Unknown Life
by Rikana
Summary: InuxKag SessxRin MirxSan -- "Mating season." The words had never meant anything to her before. But she had succumbed to him just one day, to ease his pain. The girl had long since made up her mind to give birth, alone. -Rated M for later chapters-
1. A Secret Birth

_**A/N: Maistwin here. Ooh, I guess you thought I couldn't speak for myself, did you? Well I can! Take that, Rikana! Anyway, this chapter was written wayyyyy after we started writing this thing again. Like, eighteen chapters afterward. Anywho, because this was written so late, you'll notice it is significantly better than the next four chapters. That is because we wrote the next four chapters when we were eleven years old. Currently, it has been four years since then. Self-explanatory. If you enjoy this chapter, just hold out through the next ones. The writing will improve. Until then, enjoy the story! Oh, and ignore the coming chat speak. It will disappear. Ta ta! :D**_

* * *

"I'm frightened by what I see

But somehow, I know that there's much more to come

Immobilized by my fear

And soon to be blinded by tears

I can stop the pain, if I will it all away

If I will it all away..."

Whisper - Evanescence

* * *

**Chapter I**

Mating season.

The words had never meant anything to her before. It was what her mother had used to explain the strange behaviors of birds and dogs, when she was young. Never once did she think that those simple words would one day change every aspect of her life. She didn't know that she would fall in love with a hanyou dog demon, who, in turn, would fall under the spell of that very time—"mating season."

She had succumbed to Inuyasha just one day, to ease his pain. He had avoided her for so long, even she had begun to suffer. Kagome had assumed that nothing more could happen to them, after Naraku had fallen. She allowed Inuyasha to take her, only once.

It was because of mating season that she now found herself in agony, self-exiled from her friends, and the century she had called another home. The girl had long since made up her mind to give birth, alone.

_Five years_, she had told them. _I'll come back in five years. And don't you dare come after me, Inuyasha._

Her mother had explained to her teachers that it had been rape—she told her school friends the same. That lie took some of the shock from her situation. She wouldn't attend classes while she worked through her "difficult time."

"Ojii-chan, will you get a bucket of water please?" Mrs. Higurashi worked swiftly by her bedside, doing what she could to prepare for the last stage of her daughter's labor. Kagome was thankful, though she could hardly think through her pain. Even so, she hadn't even considered going to a hospital. She hadn't once, even when she found out she was with child. If there was anything unnatural about her baby, she didn't want a doctor to know. The girl was convinced they would try to test on her, or try to terminate the pregnancy. She didn't want to take any chances.

Kagome could feel the child coming, as the pain increased. She cried out, grabbing her mom's hand tightly as she tried to get through it. "It hurts…a lot…" she moaned, looking at her mother weakly. The woman gave her a sympathetic look, and gently stroked the back of her hand.

"Be patient, dear," she said. "You have to be strong now."

It was dark outside; she could see that much from her window. There was no moon that night. Inuyasha would be human. Perhaps she saw some irony in that fact, before another wave of pain took her. She wondered, if he knew…would he have come to witness this?

Souta had somehow gotten into the room, and was now watching them with clear awe. Though Kagome would have preferred he didn't see, there was hardly much she could do about it now. She was in too much agony to care. "Is that…the baby?" she heard her brother ask. Shock was clear in his tone.

Kagome gasped softly, tightening her grip on her mother's hand. "Y-yeah, Souta," she groaned, giving him a forced smile. "T-that's…" She cried out again, pressing her other hand tight against her swollen belly.

Mrs. Higurashi released her hand for only a moment, no doubt going to shoo Souta from the room. However, it was in that moment that she felt the child leave her loins. With it came such a sensation of relief, she almost couldn't speak. She waited eagerly to hear the child cry, to announce its presence to the world. But there was silence.

Tears welled in her eyes, though she tried to convince herself that it meant nothing. As she watched, her mother cut the chord, and cleaned the baby gently. And yet, Mrs. Higurashi didn't once offer to let her daughter see her offspring. Her expression was far too sad for a woman who had just become a grandmother.

"W-well?" Kagome whispered. "W-what's wrong…?"

Mrs. Higurashi gazed at her with a look of sadness, as she held the silent newborn to her chest. "I'm so sorry, Kagome…" She wiped her eyes with one hand, as if attempting to hide her tears. "Your son…didn't make it."

Her eyes grew wide. The girl could feel her hands trembling, and the tears began to fall without pause. _Dead._ Inuyasha's son was dead. After all she had gone through to give birth to a healthy child, he hadn't lived to taken even one breath. Her despair struck her so deeply it actually began to pained her, the agony as intense as the birth. Then, she realized…

She was still in labor.

The girl pressed her hand to her belly once more, taking a stuttered breath as she slowly realized what was happening. "Okaa-san…" She gasped, looking up at her mother in disbelief. "A twin…he has a twin…"

"A twin?" Her mother looked at her with clear alarm—there was no way she had prepared for this. But the woman left the room swiftly, likely handing the stillborn child to its great-grandfather, who still stood close by. It would be easier on all of them if Kagome didn't have to see the child more than once. By the time Mrs. Higurashi sat again by her daughter's side, she was already far along in the next birth. The girl had begun to sob.

"Okaa-san, I can't do this…"

"Of course you can, dear. You're halfway there already." As heartbreaking as the situation truly was, her mother wouldn't let her give in. Mrs. Higurashi grasped Kagome's hand, continuing to stroke it lightly as she forced her way through it. Soon, a baby's cry sounded through the Higurashi household.

This one had lived.

She was almost too tired to hold the baby when her mother placed it in her arms, but the moment she felt the small child, she could feel her entire life take on new meaning. As she looked down at the bundle of cloths, her eyes still moist with tears, she felt that…everything would be ok.

The little girl had impressive lungs, for such a small child. Even as Kagome held her close, the child continued to squirm and wriggle against her mother's hold. However, the girl was so awed by her child's beauty, that the cry fell on deaf ears. Kagome ran her hand over the small, dog-like ears that sat atop the baby's head, almost hidden by the light hair that covered it. Yet it was her hair, not her ears, that took her mom by surprise. At first she thought Mrs. Higurashi had not cleaned all the blood from her head, giving her hair such an odd tint. But this wasn't the case. The child's hair was pale, almost white, but it also held the faintest tint of red—her hair was nearly pink.

"What are you going to name your daughter, Kagome?"

At first, the girl had no answer for her mother. She looked at the baby for a long moment, again gently passing her hand over the small ears. "Koyasha," she whispered, feeling new tears in her eyes. "After…her father."

She pulled the child close to her after that, only then allowing herself to cry. There were too many things happening at once. The joy of motherhood was unmistakable, and yet, the loss of her firstborn tortured her. "Okaa-san…" She looked up at Mrs. Higurashi then, in enough control of her tears to speak. "Would…Inuyasha…forgive me?"

The woman gave her a look of surprise, and then…gentleness. "Yes," she said softly. "I think he would."

* * *

It was snowing, when they buried the child under the tree of ages. Yet, Kagome was almost thankful for the cold weather. The bitter ice seemed to subdue their misery, if just for that day. Her grandfather was the one to place the baby in the small hole—she wasn't sure if she could stand it. She and the rest of her family only had to stand by, Souta with an unreadable look on his face, and her mother looking at the burial sight in forlorn silence.

"May the spirits give this child rest," her grandfather chanted, even as the ice began to cover the overturned soil. "And guide his soul somewhere where he can be free."

Before long, each of them had disappeared back into the house, to free themselves of the chill. But Kagome stayed. Her young daughter still cradled to her chest, she looked upon the small grave with tears in her eyes.

_I'm so sorry._

Once more, she heard Koyasha's quiet cry. The child seemed disturbed by the melancholy air that surrounded her—the weight of it had awoken her. Kagome found her forlorn gaze set on the young child, even as she shushed her whine. "You miss your brother, don't you?" she whispered.

Koyasha continued to cry softly, despite her mother's comfort. The woman soon realized she would have to take her inside if she wanted the baby to quiet at all. She bounced the child gently in her arms, soon turning back towards her now snow-covered home. Yet, she glanced over her shoulder, viewing her son's grave for one last time.

_Goodbye._

* * *

A vision of white swirled throughout the sky, soon covering everything in its path in the same, silent snow. But there was no one to witness it. This place was neither here, nor there—a perpetual stillness, now bathed in white. And yet, a baby's cry echoed through the desolate air, momentarily piercing that stillness. There, cradled in the roots of a lone tree, lay a newborn child. Now, the high, frostbitten branches of that tree were his shelter, and comfort. And yet, he cried.

However, it wasn't long before another presence stepped into the isolated snowfall. A youkai stared curiously at the child, even as the falling ice began to lace its way into his silver ponytail. His height, as well as his armor, had cast a dark shadow over the baby; for this reason only, the child began to sob harder. But the youkai remained unaffected. Before long, he knelt down before the misplaced newborn, and took the child up into his strong arms.

"What are you doing here, grandson?" The youkai looked at him with soft eyes, chuckling when he saw the dark-haired baby begin to calm. "You don't belong here. Not yet."

The child yawned softly, stretching and wriggling in his grandfather's hold. Yet, he was all but silent. In his brown eyes was a look of contentment, and curiosity. The depth of them almost surprised even the youkai. "Such intrigue…in someone so young." He stood slowly, careful to keep the baby close to his cold armor. At last, the man gave him a knowing smile. "Perhaps…I should give you a second chance, elsewhere."

His grandson's soft gurgle was enough of a response for him. The youkai reached out to the massive tree, carefully placing his hand on its rough bark. All at once, the snow fell from its branches as green spurted force, new life surging through the once forsaken tree. Only then did he kiss the child's forehead, and set him once more in the dark roots. "I wish you good fortune, child."

A quiet yawn from the baby stilled the falling snow; as he closed his eyes and nestled into the tree's base, everything around him seemed to fall silent. His grandfather stayed to watch him for only a moment longer, his smile bright. "Good boy," he whispered. And he was gone.

* * *

Inuyasha leaned back against the high branches of a tree, trying his hardest not to let its rustling leaves perturb him. It was just…too noisy. Even in his human state, he couldn't stand any sort of clamor. But it seemed that everything was, since Kagome left. All the progress he had made on his temper had been reduced to nothing. And though he was slowly regaining his control, he had yet to reach the level of tolerance he had achieved with his woman's help. So when he heard the quiet cry of Miroku's child, from the house below him, he expected to be tearing his hair out in frustration.

However, he wasn't. For some reason, he began to wonder what it would have been like, if he and Kagome had decided to have a child. It was for this reason that he looked down into the window of the house, his dulled senses at their peak as he tried to even glimpse the baby in the window.

Someone did appear at the window. Only a moment later, Miroku was staring up at him with what looked like concern, the crying baby cradled in his arms. "Inuyasha, what are you doing up there so late? _Someone_ must be worried about you, especially on this night."

It took only a moment for Inuyasha to regain his composition. He crossed his arms in the long sleeves of his Hitoe, and promptly turned away from the concerned party. "Keh," he muttered. "I just wanted you to shut your damn baby up."

"Now, Inuyasha, that's no way to speak to a monk, especially about his child."

"How can you still call yourself a monk?!" The hanyou gave Miroku a sharp, irritated glare. "You're _holding_ the proof you're a lecher! That brat's not even a year old, and your girl's pregnant with another one!"

Miroku sighed, trying to shush his child, despite Inuyasha's ranting. "Inuyasha…" He sighed, looking up at him almost sadly. "Come down here and hold Taji. I know you want to."

He had caught him. And as much as he wanted to sit there and deny it…he wanted to know what it was like, to hold a child. He figured it was his human consciousness getting to him again. But before long, he had climbed down from the tree, and taken the small baby from his father.

"Whatever, lecher…"

Though Taji continued to whine as the hanyou held him, somehow, he could ignore it. The feel of that baby in his arms, even as it squirmed, gave him a strong feeling of responsibility. It was as if he needed to protect the child, from whatever could possibly threaten it. For that one moment, Taji was his.

Suddenly, Inuyasha looked up, hearing a deep laughter echo throughout the area. At first he thought it was a petty demon, or Naraku somehow back from the grave, but…the sound was almost soothing. "Did you hear that?" he asked Miroku, his eyes set upon the star-filled sky.

The monk gave him a curious look, but suddenly braced himself. "Do you think it was that Misako girl again? How long has it been since she foun-"

"No, stupid, it wasn't her!" He sighed, holding the child tighter when it began to whine. The laughter had been too familiar to him, as if he had heard it somewhere before. It wasn't the sound of an evil presence. Rather…it was almost caring. Not long had passed before he heard it again, though the sound of it was almost softer.

_"Fitting…"_

The moment he heard the voice, he somehow knew. His face paled with even the thought of it, but he didn't want to let it go now. He swiftly handed Taji back to Miroku, using the any human muscles he had managed to build to quickly climb the tree. "Wait! Where are you?!" He stood atop the thickest branch, trying to see the source of the noise. But any remnant of it had already gone. Soon, Inuyasha sighed, and sat down on the branch in defeated silence.

_Father._

Whatever reason Inutaisho had for contacting him now, it would remain a mystery for a long time to come.

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_**A/N: Even if this is the first chapter you're reading of this story, review. If you've already read to chapter 18, good for you. Review anyway. :D Maistwin out.**_


	2. New Life

**A/N: Ignore the chatspeak. I thought I'd leave it in to humor Maistwin.  
**

Maistwin: So...here's the next chapter.

Rikana: Took you long enough

Maistwin: I'm working as fast as I can!

Rikana: Sure you are.

Maistwin: I AM!

Rikana: That's what you want us to think. Who knew you could take this long to post something I typed and wrote for you!

Maistwin: Yeah yeah. I'm going to start now.

* * *

"Where are you now?

I'm trying to get by with never knowing at all

What is the chance of finding you out there?

Or do I have to wait forever?"

_Where Are You Now? – Michelle Branch

* * *

_

He rarely traveled this way. It was the forest whose name was defiled with the mention of his brother, the location of the Goshinboku and the dreary old well, and the very place his brother called home. But Tenseiga had made it's call, it had led him to this small clearing around the old tree, falling into silence the moment he was standing beneath its branches. The world around him was dark as the moon was undergoing an eclipse, but the darkness held no power against his perfect sight. Every detail was distinct, every sound that would regularly be silent very audible to his pointed ears. Rin stood beside him, blind in the darkness and deaf in the night, her small hands clutched to his pant leg as he was her only guide in this night. He let her be, knowing that pushing her away to be led by Jaken would only give birth to another pointless and annoying argument. They were safe here anyways. Only he and his party were in the area, the still peace of the forest almost comforting. He, as a demon, was a rare traveler in these areas. Yokai of all status evaded the area under the rumor of the powerful priestess that lived nearby, aided by her dog eared yokai companion. For most, walking onto these grounds meant death. But, as always, Sesshomaru was never stopped in his travels by another lesser force.

But, suddenly, they were not alone. His golden eyes cut through the darkness as the weak presence came to his knowledge, his gaze pinpointing the source in a mere second. Among the twisted and gnarled roots of the elder tree lay a corpse of a newborn, unfeeling and motionless in the cold of the night. Tenseiga pulsed at his side with an intensity he had never felt before, causing him to curiously grasp it's hilt. The power flowed through his body without his permission, giving him the power of sight. And, as with every dead body he had gazed upon with his sword's influence, there were the imps of hell standing around it. But this time they only crowded around the body, talking amongst themselves in a quiet jibberish that was too lowly of a language for Sesshomaru to have knowledge of, still and unworking. The scene caught his interest, a feat not easily achieved, and the cold Lord walked with grace towards the corpse, the young girl quietly jogging to keep up with his long strides. Tenseiga sang a song as it was drawn from its shealth, quietly and swifly eradicating the unusually still collecters of souls.

A loud cry suddenly split through the silent night, creating a very small irritation bloom behind Sesshomaru's eyes, and causing the young girl that clung to him to squeak in alarm. A small ray of light shown as the moon began to make itself visible once more, now seen as the thinnest crescent against the velvet night. It was just enough light to allow the small ward the gift of sight once more, her tiny hands detaching themselves from her Lord's clothing. And as the cry continued to echo through the night, the young child stood over the reborn baby, curiosity seeping into her brown eyes.

"Sesshomaru-sama, why is there a baby here?" a pointless question came out of her mouth, a common happening because of her innocent age.

He was not to dignify her with a direct response, "Pick the child up, Rin."

She hastily obeyed, gathering the naked child in her arms, her soft gaze lovingly scanning the young boy's pale body.

"What shall we do with him, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"Give him to me." A cold demand that was met with immediate response, his single arm soon cradeling the small child that the sword had willed him to revive.

With a cold scrutinizing gaze he looked over the child, no emotion crossing over the gold. There was something there as he held the newborn in his arm, a type of connection he couldn't explain. If this had been any other child at any other location whom had appeared under different circumstances, he would have passed by without another thought. But... he hadn't with this child. The sword that he usually kept silent at his side had once again willed him to save a life of a person he knew nothing of.

A cold breeze swept over him then as the moon cast more light upon the night, wafting the child's scent up to his nose. Maybe there was some surprise in his eyes as he identified the dog demon blood in the child, but the fact was brushed away. He almost felt as if he should drop the child here and return to his travels, to forget this whole incident, and for a few silent moments he was almost certain that was what he would do. But Tenseiga pulsed once more at his side, sending a long forgotten feeling into his senses. It was the recognition of the warm and comforting aura that made him stop his train of thought, the sudden crashing of another's power that made him freeze. He was feeling his Father's presence, his long dead Father's presence, as if the man were standing right beside him. But as quickly as the feeling came, it disappeared. He was left alone once more, cold and unforgiving.

Quietly he motioned for the young girl to remove the child from his arm, and she complied quickly, gazing up at him with curious brown eyes.

"What shall we do, Sesshomaru-sama?" her voice was smaller than it was before, as if she feared the result wouldn't be what she wished.

"He is under your care and he is of your responsibility." his voice was cold as he turned and walked away, the moon's light now half released from behind its cover, "You will enter the nearby village and gather him some clothes tomorrow morning."

A brilliant smile painted itself on Rin's face, her happiness the only thing visible on her expression, "What shall we name him, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"The child's name is of your choice."

A moment of silence passed as the young girl quickly followed after her master, pushing past the shocked and speechless Jaken as she thought of a name.

With a small smile she looked down at the fussing but quiet baby, addressing the newborn though she was well aware the boy couldn't understand her. "Your name is Rikuse!"

The name sounded foolish to him, at first. It didn't mean anything. But as the years passed, slowly, he began to cherish the sound of it.

Yet, those years did pass swiftly. And despite its origins, the child grew naturally, as Rin did. The newborn became a infant, and then a small child. As his dark hair grew longer, it soon fell victim to Rin's motherly fussing, and because of the girl, his face remained clean. There remained only a single trace of abnormaity in the child--the intelligence of his dark eyes. Rikuse spoke fluently before he was three, even before he could properly walk. When he was five, he showed traces of an intelliect that rivaled even his Lord's. He was curious, and naive, but he was also calm.

Except on a single night.

But Sesshoumaru would not allow himself to recall details of the child's hanyou transformation. Only on the half moon did the child show any sign of his demon inheritance. He was, for all intents and purposes, human. Rikuse was a new ward, and his hesitant smile became a natural part of the youkai's life.

Never once did he realize it was Inuyasha's child that lived at his side.

* * *

Kosyasha had grown like a weed, aging and acting as any child would. She cried when she was upset, she whined when things didn't go her way, and she smiled when she was happy. And, after lunch, she bounced around her family's house and kept every inhabitant currently residing inside its walls entertained. Her constant chatter and endless energy was only interrupted when the pet of the household, her mother's cat, walked within five feet of her. At that point she either screamed and ran or dived into the nearest person's arms. For reasons unknown to everyone, the young girl was completely frightened by her mother's fat cat, and her fear was never calmed. It was either keep them out of the same rooms or keep the five year old in a constant state of fear.

This certain day her after lunch energy led her to climb outside her mother's window and climb up on the roof, watching the happenings of the world below with curious gold eyes. And eventually she saw her mother come to kneel underneath the shade of the Tree of Ages, praying for her long gone twin brother. On a single whim Koyasha leaped from the top of the house, landing on the branches of the large tree, only rustling the leaves ever so slightly. And from there the part demon climbed down the tree by swinging from branch to branch in a successful imitation of a monkey, eventually finding herself on the first branch of the tree. She jumped down then, landing in a squatting position in front of her mother.

"Hi, Mommy!"

The young woman jumped at the unexpected appearance of her daughter, her hand clutching at her chest. But it only took her a moment to relax, a small sigh slipping though her lips as she smiled softly.

"Hello, Koyasha dear."

"...Where's Daddy?" The question was unexpected, one of the many things the child so often said without warning.

"I've told you, dear. Daddy is somewhere far away."

"When am I going to meet him?"

Just thinking of such a thing made Kagome's heart ache, but the sadness was unnoticed by her daughter, "...Soon, I would think."

"How soon, Mommy?" her daughter had always been persistent in her interrogations.

"I'm not sure, honey. But I promise that you'll meet him one day."

"Why isn't he here with us, Mommy?"

More sad thoughts pulled at her heart, but somehow she managed to keep them out of her expression, "Because... Because he can't be right now. There's things he has to do first."

"Like what?"

Kagome sighed softly, trying to find a way to end the questioning. But the problem proved to solve itself when her daughter's direction was directed away from her, the child's gold eyes spotting something too far away for Kagome to see. What she had spotted was obvious as Kagome recognized the smile that was spreading on the young girl's face, and she was barely quick enough to catch her daughter's collar before she ran off in a demonic speed.

"Koyasha," Kagome warned, ignoring her daughter's dissapointed whine, "The last time you bothered the mailman we were sent a bill for his therapy treatment. You aren't going to be seeing him for a long time because of that."

"But Mommy!" the whine was ignored by the ex-miko, and her grip was kept strong on the child's red collar.

"C'mon, Koyasha. Leave a prayer for your brother and let's go inside."

* * *

Maistwin: How was that?

Rikana: -smiles-

Maistwin: That's because you wrote it, right?

Rikana: -nods-

Maistwin: Good for you. Well, I'll update soon. Please send reviews!

_**A/N: Ha ha! Maistwin again. The two of us completely revamped this chapter recently, so be happy. We do this for you.**_


	3. The New Moon

Maistwin: Hello to all! Happy Thanksgiving! How are all of you?

Rikana: She's been acting strangely. So... perky. I'm guessing it's from lack of sleep.

Maistwin: Alas, I miss sleep. Sleep, how I miss you! –wanders off somewhere muttering about sleep-

Rikana: -sweatdrop- Yeah. Very strange. Well, I wrote this chapter. Isn't it great?! It was kind of a spur of the moment thing I sent her, and MT seemed to like it.

Maistwin: -pops up out of nowhere- It was a good idea! I wonder why I didn't think of it. Anyway, I added parts, just to make things more logical.

Rikana: Great… let's start!

Maistwin: Yay! I'll make popcorn! –runs off to make popcorn-

Rikana: Whatever. -sigh-

* * *

"Have you forgotten all I know  
And all we had?  
You saw me mourning my love for you  
And touched my hand  
I knew you loved me then."  
Taking Over Me – Evanescence

* * *

Kagome felt sleep weighing down on her, but she forced her eyes open. Waking in the middle of the night like this, with her daughter held close, wasn't a usual occurrence. Holding Koyasha close to her gave her the comfort she needed to sleep soundly, even though the young girl was much too old to still be sleeping in her mother's bed. Neither of them cared though, so the small bed that belonged to the child lay empty on the opposite side of the small room. Shifting slightly, careful not to disturb her sleeping child, Kagome's gaze was drawn out the window. Her brown eyes searched quietly over the velvet sky for the moon, and it almost surprised her that it wasn't there. It seemed this small reminder had come around all to early again, the once a month New Moon that always seemed to sneak up on her pulling down on her heart. She shut her eyes, burying her face in her daughter's soft hair.

_InuYasha..._

It took a minute, but she knew she'd tortured herself - and him - long enough. So, with the smoothest movements and the quietest actions she managed to slide Koyasha out of her grasp, miraculously not waking the child. After tucking her child in underneath the blankets enough to ease her mothering instincts, she slid out of her pajamas to pull on a pair of blue jeans and pull a black sweater over her head, quickly jumping into a pair of tennis shoes. And for a moment she hesitated at her windowsill, unsure of her thoughts. But it didn't take long for her to silently sneak out of her room and jump down to a safe landing on the ground a story below her window, pausing shortly to let the shock wear off.

It seemed too soon when she found herself standing in front of the well, her trek over to the well house and down the stairs not memorable or important. It's dark depths were calling to her softly, but she felt that she would rather just leave and slide back into bed with her daughter. Yet, she knew that she could turn back at this point. Five years ago, she'd given herself to him. Months later, she'd birthed his stillborn baby and healthy daughter. And, up until now, she'd raised Koyasha away from him in secrecy. Those were facts that couldn't be changed, and along with them she had to bear the hardest truth of all... That she was a monster.

She was a monster for keeping his children from him, for leaving him behind on a whim. She was a fool for thinking he wouldn't take it right, for thinking he wouldn't accept her. Only when she was far beyond his reach did she realize that he truly loved her, that it wouldn't have mattered that she'd gotten pregnant to him. But the past was the past - she couldn't change what she'd done. She could only beg for his forgiveness.

So, with shaking hands and painful thoughts, she swung one leg over the rim of the well. She wasn't sure how long it took for her to swing her other leg over, but she soon found herself sitting on the rim of the well, her eyes watering over in her nervousness.

"I have to do this..." she whispered to herself quietly, "I owe him this much... and so much more."

And then she found herself falling through the air, hoping that the well's inactivity for the past years wouldn't have put it into an unworking state. But the blue magic caught, millions of stars twinkling around her. Suddenly all her fear left as memories washed over her, the magic comforting her. It ended abruptly when she felt her legs fold under her as she was softly lowered onto the ground, her eyes still cast downward to the dark dirt she knelt on. She was afraid to look up, afraid to see a starry night above her. But she managed to crane her neck up towards the sky, half hoping she'd see the roof of the well house. But her brown eyes were met with the sight of a flawless velvet sky, but instead of feeling emotion, she just felt numb. And, somehow, her numbness hurt worse than anything else.

After a few moments of struggling, she found herself standing on the grassy grounds of the past, the homesick feeling that had plagued for so many years washing away. And in almost a daze she wound her way through the trees of the forest, unsure if she was going towards Kaede's village after all this time.

Why was she doing this again? Why didn't she just burn the well and the well house to the ground and leave her past behind her, telling Koyasha that her father had died in some sort of accident? What was she going to say when she appeared in the village? What would they say to her? Would they hate her, or would they love her again?

...But most of all, could InuYasha forgive her after all of the pain she caused him?

The thought made her stop in her tracks, her fear crashing down on her all over again. She almost turned to leave then, she almost decided to leave him behind and wait for him to come for her when a voice stopped her in her tracks.

"I told you to get the hell out of here!"

The voice she had been deprived of for so long froze her mind and her body, every thought that had been going through her mind long forgotten.

"How do you know she loves you, InuYasha?" a second, colder voice floated through the air, bringing Kagome's mind back into working order, "She left you here - denying you into her life by placing a spell over you and that well."

"Oh, and you've done _nothing _like that to me."

She didn't distinctly remember when she found herself hiding behind the tree, gazing onto the scene, but she felt her heart fall. There he was, just in her reach but so far out of her grasp, facing off a love he had long since tried to forget. He was human, under his New Moon curse, and she was far out of his range of senses. It took all she had not to scream out for him.

"InuYasha," Kikyo's voice was cold and calm, too unfeeling to belong to a living woman, "Just forget her. Return with me to hell and stop denying yourself what you truly want."

"Why would I want you?!" InuYasha yelled, "Why would I want to be in love with the woman who wouldn't accept me for what I am? Why would I want to love _you, _the woman who couldn't trust me enough so she shot me to a god damn tree!"

"Why do you wish to linger in the past, InuYasha? Live in the present. Die with me."

"If you haven't realized it yet, you're already dead! I'm not going to give my life up for a bitch like you, Kikyo. I'm going to live my life and wait for _her_, and I'm going to jump down that well the moment that damn barrier is lifted!"

"You are a fool."

"No, Kikyo," InuYasha was in a violent rage, to a point where he had to hiss out his words, "I'm not a damn fool - I'm just over you."

She didn't get to hear the remainder of the conversation when her senses were thrown into an all to familiar frenzy, causing her to turn around to face an oncoming opponent.

The golden eyes she was met with felt like a blow to her stomach - she suddenly found that she couldn't breathe. In the darkness she managed to make out the shape of his body, she could see the hair that swirled around him moving quietly in the soft breeze. Seeing him, like this, where no one could save her, made her think she should be scared. But, instead, she was in awe. After five years... no, longer than that, seeing him was putting her in a confusing state. The first time she had run into him, she'd felt the same way. In awe at his cold beauty, chilled to the bone as his aura washed over her. But she wasn't afraid this time... he wasn't really a threat anymore. And for a moment she saw a flash of confusion, then of surprise pass through his flawless eyes, but it was gone quicker than it had come.

"Sesshomaru..." she breathed, emotions mixed in her voice. What should she do?

"Miko," his voice was just as cold as she remembered it, but her memories were put to shame as she spoke to him in reality, "You are... hiding from InuYasha, after leaving him alone for so many years."

The statement felt like an arrow through the heart, "What's it to you?"

"This Sesshomaru cares not of your relationship with InuYasha," he responded cooly, "But why, I wonder, did you keep his own child from him?"

Another dagger pierced her as she stood frozen in shock, unaware that the fighting between the two that she had recently been watching was quickly growing more heated, "You..." she was to shocked to form a proper sentence, "How do you...?"

"I am not ignorant like my disgrace of my half brother. All he needed to do was observe for himself to find out, as I did."

She felt defeated, "That obvious, was it?"

"To one like myself," when she didn't make a reply, he continued on, "This Sesshomaru had been under the impression that you loved InuYasha. But you hide his own child from him - your feelings have changed."

"No!" she snapped a bit louder than she had intended, "I love him! But... I was young. Scared of what he would think, what he would do. So I ran home, like the coward I am and told him not to come after me. It was a mistake, the biggest regret I have," she paused momentarily, "But why am I telling this to you, of all people?"

His silence was his reply, but before she could speak, the dead woman's words floated through the air and stopped her conversation in it's tracks.

"If you won't come with me willingly, InuYasha," there was the sound of a bow being drawn back, of a man breathing heavily in panic, "I'll kill you myself."

A snap of a string being released, the sound of an arrow slicing through the air. Kagome turned as Sesshomaru disappeared, prepared to throw herself out into the clearing. But there was no contact made as the yokai reappeared in the clearing, gracefully snatching the arrow out of the air. InuYasha was quick to make his exit at the appearance of his elder brother, knowing if he stayed he would be putting himself in more danger than ever, facing off with both enemies that he was defenseless against in this state. But Kagome didn't leave, her eyes were drawn to the yokai and dead miko who stood and stared at eachother with equal glares. It was chilling to watch the silent exchange, but she managed through it.

"No one," his voice was deadlier than Kagome had ever heard it, "but this Sesshomaru will take InuYasha's pathetic life."

When he snapped the arrow in half with his hand, Kagome was gone. If there was any blows to be exchanged between the two, she wasn't going to get caught in the crossfire. But as she turned, she heard him speak out to her once more.

"A week, miko, is all you have left."

Her mind when into a blur at that point. She felt her legs carry her through the trees and back to the well, she felt the ground disappear from underneath her when she jumped into it's dark depths. The blue swirled around her, millions of stars twinkling around her as she tried to make sense of everything. But it all came down to one thing: he loved her. He refused Kikyo completely, he had said he'd wait for her. After all she had done, he loved her. And after all he had done, she loved him. It was a confusing thing, but Kagome didn't mind. Even with the final days of her five years coming close, she didn't really feel any real fear any more. If he loved her, if he forgot Kikyo, he would forgive her. Things... would be alright, in the end.

They'd survive through it all.

And when she finally resurfaced from her thoughts she was climbing in through her window, dawn approaching quickly behind her. With speed she changed back into her pajamas, sliding back into her bed and under the covers where he daughter latched onto her.

_Koyasha..._

She smiled softly, hugging her daughter and burying her face in the young girl's hair.

_You'll meet Daddy soon, darling. Don't worry._

And then Kagome lost herself in the darkness of her mind, slipping into a deep, peaceful sleep.

* * *

Maistwin: -comes back- I made popcorn!

Rikana: You do know that the chapter's over already.

Maistwin: What? Shoot. –pouts-

Rikana: Awwww, cheer up. The next three chapters are written by you.

Maistwin: Oh yeah! And they're a lot longer than yours!

Rikana: What's that supposed to mean?

Maistwin: -sticks out tongue-

Rikana: STOP THAT!! Dang, I hate it when you,re sleep deprived. It's worse than when you're mad.

Maistwin: -smiles- Well, now I get to watch people review. –waits- Any time now….

… I'M NOT GOING TO UPDATE UNTIL YOU REVIEW!!

Rikana: On a side note, this chapter is a bit different from the original posting, but I hope you still like it!


	4. Five Years to the Day

Maistwin: Since the last update was sort of short, I figured I'd do two in one day. So… the next chapter… is… HERE!

Rikana: Acting like a cheap commercial again, eh, MT?

Maistwin: Well, I can't act like a good commercial, so cheap is as close as I can get.

Rikana: …o.O Whatever.

Maistwin: Anyway, Rikana originally wrote this chapter, but I wrote the entire end part. Oh, and the next three or four chapters are all written by me. –smiles- Yay me!!

Rikana: …I'm not really sure what to make of that. Moseltof!

Maistwin: O.O And I have no idea what to make of that. Well, enjoy!

* * *

_One shot to your heart without breaking your skin  
No one has the power to hurt you like your kin  
Kept it inside, didn't tell no one else  
Didn't even wanna admit it to yourself"  
_Get It Together – India.Arie

* * *

He glanced up at the tree as he flicked a piece of bark out from underneath his nail, almost proud at what he had done. The poor, innocent plant had been nothing magnificent before, and would never be by this point. For the past five years - down to the very day - InuYasha had tally marked it to a point where the tree was threatening not to have any bark left at all, and today had suffered it's final claw mark. One thousand, eight hundred, and twenty-five days had been marked with the same number of scratches, and InuYasha mulled over the math in his head. Kagome had said once that there was three hundred, sixty-five days in her year. And since she said he couldn't see her for five times that number, and unknowingly barred him out of the future with an all too convenient and annoying barrier, all he had to do was add three hundred, sixty-five days together five times to get the total number of days he was exiled from her and her world. But the ingeniousness of this idea did not come from himself - the hanyo lacked the education to ever add all those numbers up together on his own without breaking a few innocent inanimate objects in a timely manner. Miroku, though laughing at the hanyo while he did this, had come up with that final, fateful number.

It had been one thousand, eight hundred, twenty-five days since she'd jumped down that well... And it would only take him the briefest moment to return to her.

"Well..." he muttered to himself as he picked up two stones from the ground, turning to face the aging well, "Here goes nothing."

InuYasha was not the one who would test out and see if this barrier had been retired. He had suffered way too many an injury from it to try it again, so he tossed the first of the stones at the wooden structure. It bounced off after direct contact with the wood, leaving a small, splintering dent in the structure. After a second, making sure the barrier wouldn't burst back to life when he wasn't expecting it and send a rock his way, he tossed the second stone. It arched up and descended straight down into the depths of the well, receiving no opposition on its way. This way his cue and his harm-free guarantee that he could jump down the well. If he had given himself time to think he might have been hesitant, he might have had second thoughts. But, instead, the hanyo charged headfirst into it's depths, yelling in triumph when the magic caught him.

And this yell was heard a good mile away, where his friend's house sat at a distance away from Kaede's village. Sango, who had been sipping her tea silently as her youngest slept in her lap, smiled slightly.

"I see the barrier has worn off," came her husband's voice as he entered the room, a pair of sleeping twins carried in his arms, "I hope Kagome is ready for him."

"Of course she is," the demon slayer whispered back in response.

"I'll bet this sword that dog-boy gets his ass beat!" a young teenager said as she entered the room, holding a dingy sword high as she was followed in by a young boy.

"Isn't that your crappy sword though, Onee-san?"

The teen glared down at the child, "Shut up, runt!"

* * *

The smells of the time period were so overwhelming he almost fell back down the well. It had been a long enough while for him to become unaccustomed to the many things of Kagome's world that gave off the wretched scents, and it took all he had to jump up and open the well house door. But things became a blur when he saw the house, when a breeze sent her scent his way. He was up at her window in a blink of an eye, pulling gently to open it. But, to that amount of strength, it remained closed.

_Damn it all to hell! _Rather annoyed with the idea that after five years she wasn't home when he had come for her, he began to silently fume.

"There you are, Byou!" Without warning, sixty pounds of something landed on his head as it yelled for at a cat on the ground below, causing him to curse and nearly topple off the awning like roof.

"'The fuck?!" he tried to grab for whatever was on his head, but she was quick to jump up, landing beside him.

"Byou!" she wasn't paying attention to him or the glare and growl he was giving her as she stared down at the cat the was nearing them from below, "Wait... Byou... no!"

With an ear shattering scream that caused InuYasha to put his hands over his ears as if his life depended on it, the little girl was gone, running off and leaving the hanyo bewildered and the cat unaffected.

"...What the hell...?" he muttered as he rubbed at a now sore spot on his head where the child hand landed on him. But it didn't take him long to completely forget about her, his one track mindset taking over.

He was quick to make his way down to the house, and without even attempting to announce his presence, he broke the locked door down. Going against his better judgment he began to tear through the house, opening drawers and throwing cushions across the room as he searched for something to explain where Kagome was. It never occurred to him, even once, to simply make himself comfortable and wait for her. Simply, after five years, InuYasha's intelligence of common manners hadn't increased, if not deteriorated completely.

"Hey, mister!" InuYasha's current rampage on the main room's couch was halted as a small girl interrupted him, "What are you doing?"

He glared at the girl, "Mind your own business."

"Mommy's gonna be mad." she said, looking around at the destroyed house, "Even _I _haven't been this bad before!"

"Shut up kid," the hanyo demanded, tossing a pillow at her face, "I'm looking for someone..."

She caught it, a confused look on her face, "Does the person live in the couch?"

"No, you idiot!" he was amazed at the girl's lack of intelligence, though he wasn't one to talk, "I'm trying to figure out where she went! Who the hell are you anyways?"

"I'm supposed to talk to strangers!" she screamed suddenly, thinking she was in danger, "GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

"Dammit!" InuYasha dove at the girl, toppling to the ground with her and holding his hand over her mouth, "Stop your damn screaming!"

She made a muffled noise under his palm, but realized her speech had been taken away with her. So, reverting to very childish and animal-like strategies, she bit his hand. He seemed unaffected though, even as she chomped down as hard as she could.

"Kid, don't even try. You aren't going to hurt me."

Without warning, she screamed and unlatched her teeth, the sound loud even though it was muffled.

"You have three seconds to explain what you are doing to her."

He froze at the sound of the voice, as the girl giggled madly in his hold.

"Three..."

He turned, wide eyed, and the child managed to worm her way out of his hold.

"Two..."

Gold eyes met brown fury as she towered over him, so much older than he'd remembered her.

"One...!"

_Oh shit._

Finally, the pieces clicked together in his head, "Kagome - wait!"

"InuYasha, sit boy!"

And, for the first time in five years, his once dead beads flared to life with more power than ever before, sending him plummeting into the ground. He cursed loudly, out of habit, as he heard the young girl laugh madly, Kagome's silent rage destroying him as he ate the floorboards. When he finally managed to pull his head out of the crater, he glared at the older woman, ignoring the young girl that had tortured him in her arms.

"What the hell was that for?!" Even though he sounded angry, he really wasn't as emotions swept over him with the first sight of her after five years.

"What were you doing to her?" Her calm unnerved him.

"Who the hell is she?!"

He watched as the jaw muscles in her mouth tighten, he hands twitching as she held the young girl. In amazement, he watched the anger in her eyes turn into a sudden sadness, and the worry swept through him before he could even react.

"Uhh..." the young girl said, studying her mother's face, "Who's he? Why'd he fall to the ground like that?"

"Shut up, runt." InuYasha ordered as he pulled himself out of the crater, standing to face her, "Kagome... Why the hell are you sad?"

She turned her face away from him as she repositioned the child on her hip, the girl falling silent and staring up at his ears. And, for a moment, he stared back, looking into the girl's golden eyes. He watched as her confusion turned to realization, and then to shock. Her mouth moved to form a word she didn't speak and he didn't understand, her small hand moving up to take hold of the bill of her hat.

_That's the hat Kagome used to have me wear..._

"Mister," the little girl said, still holding onto the hat, "Why do you have dog ears?"

"Koyasha, dear," Kagome's voice was wavering as she knelt down to set the girl on the ground, never once glancing back at InuYasha as she pried the child's small fingers away from her hat and making sure it was tight on her head, "Go play with Souta-ojichan."

"But..." the girl's eyes traveled back up to InuYasha's ears, a single finger pointing up at him, "He has ears like-"

Kagome put a finger to the girl's lips, silencing her, "Go play with Souta-ojichan."

Silently, though reluctantly, the young girl obeyed, running off. And for a moment Kagome just stayed there, kneeling on the ground and staring into nothingness, not wanting to stand and face him.

"InuYasha..." her voice was quiet, shaking ever so slightly, "Go up to my room, please. I'll be there soon."

"No." without permission or warning he swept her up in his arms, causing her to squeak lightly in his hold, "I want to talk to you."

"But -"

He didn't wait to hear what she had to said. He simply dashed up the stairs and into her room in a matter of seconds, unceremoniously dropping her on her bed.

"Who the hell was that kid?" he asked without giving Kagome even a second to recuperate.

"InuYasha..." she said, annoyed, "...You need to calm down."

"Why?!" he demanded, snapping at her, "You disappeared on us for five years. Tell me who the hell the girl was or at least say 'hello'!"

She sighed, "I'm sorry, InuYasha. I didn't expect you back so soon."

"It's been five years. I wasn't going to just let you get away with even more time."

He had noticed that she wasn't apologizing for that until the salt of her tears came to his nose.

"Kagome... what the hell?" he tried to get a look at her face, but she was in his arms before he could manage it, crying into his chest.

"I'm so, so sorry!" she sobbed, shaking as his arms came to rest in confusion around her, "I understand if you don't want to forgive me!"

"What the fuck are you talking about, wench?!" - _What the hell did I do?! Not even five fucking minutes and she's already bawling! - _"What the hell are you apologizing for?!"

Before she could answer him, there was the sound of a door opening and a young man cursing.

"MOMMY!" the young girl screamed, running up and tugging on Kagome's pant leg, "Why are you crying?!"

InuYasha froze. Time came to a abrupt, screeching halt as his hands fell away from her, unable to hear or see anything. He took a step back, staring her with wide, disbelieving golden eyes, his skin paling as the blood drained from his face. He didn't notice as his hands began to tremble, his body twitching violently. Without warning he struck at the young girl, ignoring Kagome's shrill scream as the back of his hand met contact with the uppermost part of the terrified child's hat. The accessory went flying, leaving the girl unharmed, the mass of pink hair that had been concealed frizzing out slightly as it was released from it's confinement. And there they were, sitting a top her head, tips twitching ever so slightly as they rose up from their flattened position on her skull. With a single whiff of the air he smelt the youki he hadn't noticed before swirling in the young child's scent, the distinct smell of demonic blood.

"Who?" he asked, growling through his teeth, rejecting Kagome as she reached out for him, "Who the hell did you sleep with?!"

"Mommy..." the young girl whimpered, fabric tearing as the child's grip was too strong for the jeans her mother wore.

Kagome's tears were flowing faster than ever as she ignored her child, trying to be strong as she stared straight back into InuYasha's angry glare.

"Is that why you left?!" he asked when she didn't respond, venom dripping from her words, "Because you got knocked up with someone else's kid?! Because you couldn't face _me_ - or anyone else, you whore!?"

"InuYasha..." the miko's voice was weak, laced with sadness and regret.

"No - I don't want to fucking know!" he glared down at the young child, "I'll just leave you and your little bastard daughter here on your own! I'll leave and I won't come back, just like you wanted!"

"InuYasha...!"

"I'll destroy the well on the other side, even! Since that's what you wanted!"

"InuYasha, please!"

"Be happy, Kagome!" he yelled, turning on his heel, ready to leave, "Thanks for fucking nothing!"

"InuYasha, she's yours!"

The world stopped, for the second time that day. He was frozen again, unable to move.

_What...?_

"She's yours!" Kagome continued, when he didn't respond, "She's your daughter, InuYasha. I was pregnant when I left, pregnant with _your _children! I was afraid..." her voice began to waver as she explained, "I was young and scared... I didn't know what to do... so I just left."

"Afraid of what?" his mind began to work again, but he kept his back to her, "Afraid of _me_?"

Kagome fell to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably, "Yes, InuYasha. I was afraid of you. I was afraid of what you would think, of what you would do, of what would happen... I was young and stupid! I just turned to the only place I thought I could!"

"You... didn't trust me."

"InuYasha," she tried to find the words, but after some struggle, she just gave up, "I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry."

He sighed, back still turned to her. He wasn't sure what to do. A part of him told him to run back to the feudal era for a while and burn off some steam, another part of him told him to go and gather Kagome up in his arms and try and comfort her. But before he could decide to do one or the other, there was a tug and one of his sleeves.

"Hey, mister," the young girl said, staring up at him as he stared right back down at her, "She said she was sorry."

"And?" he asked coldly, "Sorry doesn't fix everything."

"And?" she echoed, "She means it. If you're really my Daddy and you won't be nice to Mommy, I'll hate you!"

The young girl's words shocked him speechless, and so she continued.

"Mommy cries about Daddy, sometimes. She tells me that Daddy cares about her and that's why she cries. I don't know what she means a lot of the time, but I know Daddy wouldn't care! He'd go and stop her crying, because he hates it!" - he hated her tears; how they smelled, how they felt, how they fell - "But you must not be Daddy."

After a moment of thought, once he was able to figure things out, he turned around. Slowly, he approached Kagome, leaving the child to stand where he had left her, stopping when he was just in front of her.

"Kagome..." he didn't kneel down or touch her, "...What's her name?"

"K-Koyasha." Kagome chocked out, looking up at him with tear stricken eyes.

He didn't think about holding his hand out to help her up, he didn't remember the feeling of her hand in his when she used him for support to stand up. He just watched her eyes, the deep swirling brown, drown in the tears she cried. It hurt him to see it, and after a moment, he took a single hand and wiped her face clean of her tears.

"You won't do something like this ever again?" he asked blankly, almost pleading.

She nodded, diving back into his arms, burying her face into his chest as his arms rest limp at his sides, "Never."

Slowly, he moved his arms up to hold her, wrapping them around her tight. For a single moment that seemed like an hour, they stood there in each other's embraces, silent and motionless.

"Hey, mister," Koyasha came up to them, staring up at the man who was her father, "You're Daddy, right?"

He looked down at her, emotions running wild throughout him as he stared down at the child that was his daughter, "Yeah."

She gave him a small, brilliant smile, folding her hands behind her back and rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet, "I missed you."

In that single moment, for that single sight, InuYasha's heart melted into the nothingness of a long-absent family.

* * *

Mrs. Higurashi had been surprised when she saw InuYasha, but even more surprised when she had seen the state of her house. Not long after, she had sentenced InuYasha to a lifetime of cleaning, which he grudgingly accepted.

At the time for dinner, long after InuYasha's first round of cleaning the house he'd destroyed, they were all sitting at the table, the new father and daughter eating ramen while the others ate more dinner-appropriate food, conversation floating peacefully through the air. Koyasha was being quite curious, questions flying from her mouth at an unstoppable speed that her entire family tried to keep up with, no end in the forseeable future. InuYasha tried to answer her as many as he could, always shying away from the subject of his absence and home, Kagome there to help him get out of the corners Koyasha so easily managed to back him into. But, all in all, Koyasha had most of her questions answered.

"Daddy?" Koyasha asked again, looking at her father.

"Yes?" he sighed.

"Why were you gone for such a long time?"

His eye twitched slightly as he looked over at Kagome desperately, not knowing what infromation he was allowed to disclose to the girl.

Kagome sighed, "He was gone because… because I didn't want him here for a while."

Koyasha gave her mother a confused look, "You love Daddy, don't you?"

"Yes." Kagome answered calmly, though her blush didn't go unnoticed by InuYasha.

"Then why didn't you want him here?"

Kagome was about to answer, but InuYasha interrupted.

"I couldn't be here. I was out taking care of bad guys."

"Really?" she was awe-stricken, under the impression that her father was some type of super-cop.

"Keh. Why wouldn't I be?"

"...I dunno." With that the young girl stood up, "I'm gonna go to the big tree!"

And then she was gone, not giving anyone time to object. Soon after, once dinner was done and dishes were cleaned, both miko and hanyo made their way back up to the room the young daughter and mother shared.

"What you told Koyasha…" Kagome began, trying to choose her words correctly as she sat down upon her bed, "What did you mean?"

"Whadda think I was going to do, Kagome? Sit around like a fucking idiot and do nothing for five years?! I was out killing youkai who got on my nerves."

She sighed, "I should have expected as much."

"Yeah, you should have." InuYasha said with a grin, taking a seat beside her, "But I would have been out doing that even if you hadn't left, anyways."

"Why?"

He gave her a tolerant look, "To keep you safe."

"InuYasha…" Kagome said quietly, amazed with him, "You don't have to do that for me."

"But I would have... no, I _did_ do it." He said simply, looking out the window, the sun nearly ready to set.

She leaned against him, his arm coming to drape around her shoulder.

_He really does care about me._

"Thank you…" she muttered, "It means a lot."

He didn't reply, just looked down at her, shifting his sitting position so he was facing her completely, her head leaving his chest. For a long moment they just stared into each other's eyes, brown meeting gold, unable to make a movement. In five years, this was their first moment alone together. Both of them had waited for this moment for the longest times. And now, it was finally here.

Their faces were drawing steadily closer together, and then they kissed, for the first time in such a long time.

* * *

Maistwin: There! All done!

Rikana: Grrrreeeeaaaat. I'm tired.

Maistwin: I don't care. I got my sleep.

Rikana: I'm your friend, you should care. I'm the one that has to deal with your insanity when you don't have any sleep. A little sympathy would be nice.

Maistwin: -shrugs-

Rikana: -sticks out tongue-

Maistwin: Oh well. Oh! And for all of those who love Sesshomaru a little too much...

Rikana: -Hops up and down- Ooh! Ooh! Me! Me!

Maistwin: Yeah, like her, then I have good news!

Rikana: Aw, don't tell me you saved a bunch of money on your parent's car insurance.

Maistwin: Where'd you get that? I was going to say the next chapter is about 50 percent Sesshomaru.

Rikana: YAY!! -hugs Sesshomaru plushie- I love Sesshy!

Masitwin: right... REVIEW PLEASE!!

**A/N: Okay, this is the end of the Maistwin/Rikana conversations, thank god. This chapter was totally changed from the original posting, too, so, I don't even know why I bothered to right the conversation. But, anyway, chapter updates will be slower, I've only updated as much as I have because I've had none of my stuff to write Goodbye with since I'm at my Dad's house. All the other stuff is at my Mom's. How frustrating. But anyway. I did update yesterday, but apparently, no one noticed. So, instead of the "inactive" message, there's a chapter now. So, as Maistwin says, REVIEW!! Please and thank you!**


	5. Koyasha and Rikuse

Late at night, Koyasha woke up to a familiar phenomenon.

She groaned, seeing the hair that fell in front of her face was a shimmering black. Was it really that time again?

The little girl put a hand up to the side of her head, finding an ear there, and groaned again. She hated the half moon, she hated this night of her mortality. So, carefully, she wormed her way out of her sleeping mother's embrace, getting down off the bed so she could go stand at the window.

For a moment, she stared up at the one half of the moon up in the velvet black sky, glaring at it.

"I hate these ears," she grumbled to herself, tugging at one of her earlobes, "I can't hear anything with them."

And, when she was done glaring at the moon, she quietly and quickly slipped out of the room, closing the door behind her.

"You really must be my kid, huh?" said a voice from the dark hallway, making Koyasha jump about eleven feet in the air.

"Daddy!?" Koyasha screamed, forgetting that everyone else in the house was asleep as she recovered from her near heart attack.

InuYasha squatted down to her level, looking at her curiously with his golden eyes as he gently tugged at her black hair.

"Even got the black human hair…" he muttered.

Previously, InuYasha had been leaning up against the doorframe of Kagome's room until Koyasha had come out, and in not knowing of her transformation, had scared her completely for he had assumed she had sensed him. Now he was standing once more, his arms folded inside his kimono.

"How'd you know I was your father anyways?" InuYasha asked calmly, not bothering to think about the question before he said it.

"Your doggy ears," explained the little girl, "They're like mine."

"Keh," he muttered, "Figures."

Then the silence reigned free for a moment, making Koyasha uneasy.

"…Daddy?" she asked meekly.

"Yeah."

"I'm… I'm scared." She muttered quietly, "I'm always scared on these nights… It always seems like everything is out to get me – even the birds look like they're gonna eat me…"

InuYasha stared down at her for a minute, looking at his daughter carefully. Then, the hanyo did what everyone else thought was impossible for him. Kneeling down once more, he scooped his daughter into his arms, embracing her warmly.

"I'm here, you don't need to be scared," he said gently as he hugged her, "I'll murder whatever damn creature tries to hurt you. I want you to sleep without worry, got it?"

Koyasha, though she heard her father's words, couldn't really understand his action. He was her father, that much she knew, but he just seemed so… fierce. How could someone so fierce be this kind? But, what he said was so calming that all her shock melted away and she fell into his warm chest, finding herself hugging him as well.

InuYasha's look of determination softened at his daughter's willing touch, his heart opening a bit. He then picked up the small girl and carried her back to Kagome's room, gently laying her down in the bed, careful not to wake the sleeping Kagome. But, as he tried to let go of his daughter, she held on tight to his kimono.

"Daddy," she said, her voice sounding smaller than usual, "Can you sleep with us?"

InuYasha froze, his expression going strange before he realized it was an innocent request.

_Damn, _he thought,_ that only shows that Miroku's mind has rubbed off on me…_

He looked down at his daughter's face, noticing for the first time how vulnerable she looked. At four, she had been isolated from everything a young child should be able to do, just because no one would accept her... Just like he had been. So, he nodded, Koyasha letting go of his kimono as he lay down next to her and her mother. The bed was small, but as he let Koyasha cuddle close into him, it didn't matter. He was close to them and that was all that mattered. For the first time in five years, he felt comforted.

_After so long, _He thought as he closed his golden eyes, _she still loves me. After all the shit I put her through, she still gave birth to my child. And even my daughter, who barely knows me, treats me as if I've been here her whole life._

Absentmindedly, InuYasha reached out to Kagome and pulled her closer to him and Koyasha. Then she mumbled his name in her sleep, cuddling closer to both him and their daughter, who was in between them. Then he heard his daughter giggle, and he opened his eyes to give her a confused look.

"Mommy has missed you so much, Daddy," Koyasha whispered up to her father, a smile upon her face, "When I asked Mommy about you, she loved it. She'd talk about you forever, Daddy. And now that you're here, she's gonna be really, really happy."

InuYasha stared down at his daughter for a moment, unable to hide the emotions that were crossing his face.

He pulled his daughter a bit closer, "I love you." He mumbled, "Both of you."

She smiled softly, "I love you too Daddy. And I know Mommy does too."

And then, as the silence reigned free, they both fell into a deep sleep, the family of three all having the most peaceful sleep they'd ever had…

Later, as the night was beginning to end, the door to the room opened a little, and Kagome's mother peeked in. She saw the hanyo with his arms wrapped around his loved ones, and Mrs. Higurashi was filled with relief. She thought that InuYasha might have abandoned Kagome when he had found out about Koyasha, but, apparently, she was wrong. Maybe InuYasha would be a true father to Koyasha over time, and maybe Kagome would finally find true happiness with him. Maybe, just maybe, Mrs. Higurashi didn't know as much about InuYasha as she had thought. There could be a man deep inside InuYasha's heart that she hadn't seen yet, and hopefully, that man was coming out now.

Then the door closed slowly, silently, and Kagome's mother left the sleeping family to their dreams.

* * *

Rikuse lay sleeping in Rin's arms, like a large teddy bear, blue stripes and white hair now a part of his features. Sesshomaru stood watching over the two, not thinking about much as he watched the children. Jaken had run off somewhere, but he knew that the little toad demon would come running back soon enough. He always did.

The great lord let a sigh pass through his lips, turning away from the mortal and part demon.

_He seems to be gaining control of his demonic power, _he thought with half a mind, referring to his nephew, _but still… this Sesshomaru can't help but wonder why, or how, his hanyo transformations have been reversed…_

It was true, that with Rikuse, things were stranger than usual. Usually, with both hanyo's and part demons, there would be one night each month where they would lose their demonic powers, reverting to a human form from the time the night began to where the night ended. InuYasha's nights were of the new moon, for he had been born under a lunar eclipse. It was true, that in certain cases, that some of hanyo birth would undergo transformation more than just once a night, some transforming every night. But those cases were so rare that only one out of a hundred hanyo persons would have it. Yet, with Rikuse, he would take his transformation twice a month, underneath a half moon, but he would not take on a human form. Instead, he would take on a dangerously strong demonic form, and in the past, he had been unable to control himself or his thoughts.

Broken from his thoughts, Sesshomaru sighed ever so softly, looking down at his remaining arm. Underneath his kimono sleeve he could see the scar he now bore ever so clearly, his mind wandering to the memories he kept caged away in his mind…

"_Rikuse-sama! Rikuse-sama!" Rin called out with obvious worry in her voice, the sun setting in the west._

"_Damn you wretched girl!" Jaken squawked angrily at the twelve year old, "Can you not even keep track of an infant?!"_

"_Oh, but Jaken-sama, he just crawled away!" She said in a slightly accusing tone as she rounded on the toad, the height differences between the two giving her a slightly more ferocious and fearsome, "And you should not be yelling at me! You should be helping me find Rikuse-sama!"_

Jaken didn't respond, feeling slightly overpowered and embarrassed, as well as angry.

"_Oh no, oh no, oh no! The sun is setting!" Rin worried, her anger at Jaken fading away, "We'll never find him in the dark!" She then turned to look at the back of Sesshomaru, help in her eyes, "Sesshomaru-sama, what shall we do?!"_

_Sesshomaru, noticing the look she was giving him without even looking at her, gazed across the forest that was being blanketed in a crushing darkness, his nose searching for the scent he had come to know. And, after a few seconds of pause, the sound reached his ears as the sun set completely._

_A soft baby's cry, a cry he knew so well. _

"_He's to the east, Rin, not a few yards from here," Sesshomaru answered her pleading stare, not moving a bit as he felt her presence disappear. There were no demons near, she would be in no danger, and neither would Rikuse._

_The boy's cry continued as Rin drew closer to him, and Sesshomaru listened carefully. There was something wrong… The cry turned into a baby's scream of pain, loud and unending. Sesshomaru turned his head towards the sound. The scream elevated into a roar. A roar of an inu yokai_

_In a blink of an eye Sesshomaru was gone, leaving Jaken alone and confused, following the scents and sounds. The roar grew louder as he went past Rin, the girl stopping the moment she saw the flash of white go past her, knowing that if Sesshomaru had passed her, there was danger ahead._

_And, of course, there was._

_And as Sesshomaru ran towards this noise, this person, this thing, he was cut off. In front of him, a large white dog appeared out of nowhere, bloodlust in its eyes. It wasn't very tall, it was only about as tall as Sesshomaru's nose was from the ground, and it was very young, but, none the less, it was deadly. And Sesshomaru knew who this dog was, he knew what had happened… kind of. But before he could open his mouth to speak, the dog swiped at him, and the inu demon dodged gracefully. Yet, somehow, as he was slightly preoccupied with his thoughts, he was caught with his guard slightly down._

_The dog's teeth sank into his arm, the pain shooting up his arm almost too much to ignore. With his inner arm now injured, his only arm injured, Sesshomaru stretch his claws and swiped the demon on the nose, causing the demon to shrink back automatically. It began to whine, its nose bleeding. And then, as its whines grew louder, a tornado of white surrounded the dog, shielding it from view._

_Then there was a baby, a harmless, crying baby, with a scratch on its nose._

_That was when Sesshomaru went down to the child, calling Rin's name in the process. She would hear him, and she would come. That was for sure. The scent of his own blood a bit overwhelming, Sesshomaru looked down into the child's golden eyes._

The exact opposite of what you should be, young one, _he thought with half a mind, examining the boy's eyes with a piercing stare._

_There was something about the boy's eyes that captivated him in this moment, something he hadn't ever noticed before. Something familiar lay in those eyes, something he couldn't quite make out. Then, out of nowhere, a memory of InuYasha flashed in his mind's eye, the hanyo's tear filled eyes crystal clear in his thoughts._

Am… Am I mistaken? _He questioned himself, examining the child's eyes closer, _Does this child remind me of him… that filthy hanyo I have the misfortune to be related to?

_Then the scent of the boy's blood came to his nose, and his eyes widened ever so slightly._

Is this the child of InuYasha…? _Then Rin came up to him, her eyes brimming with tears as she picked up the child she had come to mother._

…And then Sesshomaru snapped out of his memories, his eyes unable to part from the wound his nephew had inflicted upon him. His nephew… the son of his dirty baby brother. But even though Sesshomaru knew for a fact that this child was part of his bloodline, he could not understand the circumstances he had found the child under. He knew that InuYasha wasn't the most caring of people, but he was sure that the hanyo wouldn't have left his own son out in the wilderness to fend for himself. But then again, he doubted that InuYasha even knew he had a child. That girl he had come upon, the miko named Kagome, she was this child's mother. And, for some reason, she had kept the truth from the man that was her child's father. And, for reasons he didn't understand, she must have been the one who left her child to die in the wilderness. But that didn't seem to fit right either. He had met the woman on the occasions that he had attempted to kill her, and she did not seem the type to let a child alone like that.

So, what had happened so long ago?

* * *

He was staring at her and she was staring at him. This silence bugged them both, but neither of them could find the will power to speak.

"…How long were you planning to keep her a secret?" InuYasha asked, eventually, his voice somewhat small and full of accusatory wonder.

"Hm?" Kagome replied. She hadn't been paying attention.

"What do you mean 'hm?' You know exactly what I mean," he was annoyed now, "How long were you going to keep Koyasha from me?"

Her gaze fell to the floor, "I… I don't know," she stuttered, "I didn't know how you would react InuYasha. I was so scared, I just didn't know what to do. So, I left. I couldn't find any other way."

"You couldn't find any other way! You should know me better than that!" he accused, "Do you think I would have hurt you or something!? Couldn't you see!? I loved you! I love you! Why can't you just… just trust me…"

"InuYasha," she felt that tears might come as she spoke, "I was so scared back then, I didn't know what to do. I was confused."

"Kagome, you just left me. Me _and_ the others. You left for no reason, and you stayed away from us for five god damn years! I thought you might have died!"

Kagome's eyes narrowed slightly, "Then why didn't you just come after me?!"

InuYasha's eyes turned from anger to a strange sorrow, but he continued to shout, "You told me not to!"

"Then why'd you come back yesterday!?"

"Because it has been five years! Are you really that stupid, Kagome?"

Kagome raised an eyebrow, "You counted five years to the day?"

"…So what if I did?"

* * *

_Kagome stood in front of the bone eater's well, talking to the people she had become so close to. Did she really have to do this? Did she really have to leave them behind?_

_Sango stood closest to her, Miroku's arm around her waist as she held Kirara in her arms. InuYasha was across from her, anger written all over his features. Shippo was sitting upon his shoulder, looking a bit distressed. _

"_Please, InuYasha," Kagome begged, "Please don't try to stop me. Don't argue with me… Please just let me go…"_

"_Hell no, Kagome," he yelled at her, "I'm not letting you go for an 'unknown' amount of time!"_

_She felt the tears well up in her eyes. She didn't want to do this, but he just couldn't see that. She wanted to stay here with him, she wanted to be by his side forever and always. But she couldn't… she just couldn't._

"_You don't care do you?!" she suddenly yelled at him, anger flowing in her falling tears, "You don't care about me – you don't even trust me!"_

_InuYasha suddenly felt very confused. Now there were tears?_

"_Kagome, what the hell are you crying for!?" he shouted questioningly, "You can't just leave! I won't let you!"_

She's not acting like herself, _he thought wearily, _What the hell is wrong with her?

"_InuYasha," Miroku spoke up, "We've defeated Naraku. She has no real reason to stay here in our time any longer. She's free to come and go as she pleases, considering that the jewel will still have an effect on the well. You have no right to stop her from going. It's her own choice from here on out. And besides, technically, she doesn't actually belong in our time. She belongs in her own time."_

_The monk paused, looking over at the distressed miko, "But I know I'd like you to stay just as much as InuYasha would. Is there really no possible way for you to at least stay for Sango's and my union ceremony?"_

_Kagome nearly sighed. She wanted to stay, she wanted to see Sango and Miroku wed. But if she stayed much longer, she'd have no secret to keep._

_So, the regret obvious, she shook her head, "I'm so sorry, Miroku… Sango… I just can't."_

_Then her friends, her understanding friends, nodded, small smiles of comfort and regret on their faces as they knew there was no way they could change her mind. But, of course, InuYasha had to make his say in this all the more apparent._

"_There is no way I'm letting you leave!! How do I know you'll come back!?"_

_Kagome looked at the man she loved, nearly on the verge of tears. Then, slowly, a man appeared in her mind's eye, a man she had known so well for many years._

"_Here," she said, pulling a necklace over her head, "Keep this. My… my father gave this to me before he died…"_

I'll return, InuYasha, _she thought to herself, _the next five years will fly by. I hope they do… I love you so much.

_InuYasha looked at the necklace she was giving him, the small heart embedded with shimmering blue diamonds. Her father had given this to her?_

_With confused hands, he took it from her, letting the cold metal fall into his palm._

_Then Miroku spoke up again, both Kagome and InuYasha not noticing the smirk he had upon his face, "Shouldn't you have something of InuYasha's in return, just in case you forget you gave that necklace to him."_

"_I don't have anything to give her," he scoffed, but then a flicker of hope popped up in his mind, "Besides these beads, anyways."_

"_What do you mean, InuYasha?" Shippo spoke up, hopping up onto the hanyo's head, "You've got something to give her."_

_Anger suddenly found its way to the small kitsune, "And what could that possibly be, runt?" InuYasha growled._

"_Open you're mouth."_

"_Why the hell should I—"_

_Quickly and swiftly, the kitsune put his hand inside the hanyo's mouth, grabbed a front tooth, and pulled on it until it popped out. In response to this, InuYasha yelled in pain so loudly that Koga could have probably heard him from his mountains. _

"_Here you go, Kagome!" Shippo said brightly, wiping the blood off of the tooth and getting as far away as he possibly could from InuYasha after he had given the fang to Kagome._

"_WHAT THE HELL!!? I'M GONNA KILL YOU, YOU LITTLE RUNT!!!"_

_Shippo then disappeared from the scene, transforming into a cartoonish bird and flying away from the hanyo he had angered. InuYasha could only growl his way. And, in this time, Kagome had both legs inside the well as she sat on its rim._

_She didn't want to do this. She didn't want to do this. She didn't want to do this…_

"_Goodbye…" she began to cry, "I'll never forget any of you. I promise I'll come back as soon as I can."_

_Then she jumped trying to rid herself of the tears that streamed down her face as InuYasha yelled after her._

_And, though she expected him to jump in after her, he didn't, for a barrier blocked his way. A barrier that bound them to their promises, making it impossible for the two to ever see one another until five years had passed. The bond made by miko and hanyo, through and necklace and a tooth would forever hold, invincible and unmovable until it was time._

* * *

Now Kagome sat on the couch, flipping through television channels as InuYasha just watched the screen in absolute amazement. She giggled a little bit, amused by the confused look on his face.

"What's so funny?" he snapped hearing her.

"Nothing," she giggled in reply.

He glared at her for a moment, quite aware that she had been laughing at him.

"So where's the little whelp?" he asked, referring to his daughter.

Kagome's gaze fell to the floor, "Out by the sacred tree, I guess…"

Noticing her look, InuYasha's curiosity turned to worry, and he turned his body so he was facing her completely, "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Nothing…"

"Don't lie Kagome," he said somewhat comfortingly, "You can tell me things, you know."

Then she looked up at him, tears brimming in her eyes. Automatically, he took her hand. Why was she crying? What had he said? What had he done?

"When… when I gave birth to Koyasha," she chocked out, "She was a twin… she had a brother…"

InuYasha's eyes widened a bit. He had _two_ kids?!

But then, he realized why she was crying and why she couldn't finish her sentence.

He pulled her into a tight embrace, "He didn't survive, did he?" he asked softly.

She shook her head, burying herself as deep as she could into his chest. She had lost so many things in her life… she'd lost him for so long, she'd lost her child, she'd lost her father, she was pretty sure she'd lost her chance at a normal life…

"Did you bury him out there, under that tree?" he asked, "Is that why Koyasha visits that place so much?"

Kagome nodded in his chest, and was utterly surprised when he picked her up. He didn't say anything and she said nothing in return, and then they found themselves at the base of the sacred tree, Koyasha looking up at her parents with curious eyes.


	6. Eight Minions

Rikuse fell on the ground, his forehead throbbing.

Why did he always run into trees?

"Rikuse-sama!" Rin exclaimed, the laughter in her voice apparent as she knelt down beside him, "Are you alright?"

The boy mumbled a yes, getting a giggle from his mother figure.

_This must be a curse, _he thought to himself, _a running-into-trees curse…_

He stood up then, pretending that nothing had happened, and began to follow after the white haired daiyokai in front of him. Rikuse held Sesshomaru in high respect, but in being five years old, even though he acted a lot older than that, there was the inevitable urge to ask a billion and one questions. So, in feeling that "urge," he quickened his pace so he came up to walk at Sesshomaru's side.

"Sesshomaru-sama?" he asked his lord, and in knowing the silence from the daiyokai was acknowledgement, he continued, "Did you know my mother?"

For a moment, Sesshomaru did nothing, just looked at the road in front of him. A little information couldn't hurt, right?

"No."

"Oh…" Rikuse looked slightly disappointed at this, "…Do you think she was pretty?"

"Perhaps."

Rikuse paused a moment before asking his next question, "What about my father, did you know him, Sesshomaru-sama?"

Sesshomaru's hand twitched beneath his shirt, "Yes."

The little boy's face lit up, "Really!? What was he like, Sesshomaru-sama?!"

"Your father was a filthy hanyo," Sesshomaru began, caring not of how harsh his words were, "And did not know his place in life. He was arrogant and annoying – a disgrace to his own demonic blood."

"What…?" Rikuse asked shocked. How could his father really be like that?

Sesshomaru said nothing, awaiting the next question he knew he would be asked. His words may have been harsh, but it was the truth that he saw.

"Sesshomaru-sama… is my father still alive?"

"This Sesshomaru does not know."

"Boy! Stop pestering Sesshomaru-sama!" Jaken scolded, but Rikuse just looked back at him blandly, not really caring about the toad demon, "He cares not of what his half brother does now! Do not bother Ses—"

A rock hit the toad demon directly in the back of the head, causing him to fall flat on his face. Rin stood behind him, looking angry.

"Don't talk about him, stupid!" she scolded.

_Half brother? _Rikuse wondered, falling back behind his lord.

"…Sesshomaru-sama? Does that mea–"

"Enough, Rikuse." The demonic lord interrupted, not allowing the boy to further question about his half brother, "Lingering in the past is a dangerous thing, it causes emotions to surface, weakening you. So stay not in your past, and do what you must to move forward in your life."

Rikuse paused, thinking of his lord's words.

"Alright…" 

* * *

Koyasha smiled widely, beginning to get up from where she had been sitting. But instead InuYasha knelt down beside her, gazing blankly at the tree he had once been pinned to, still holding Kagome close.

"Daddy, weren't you stuck to that tree once?" Koyasha asked with a smile that would brighten up anyone's day.

InuYasha smiled lightly and closed his eyes, seeing the whole scene replay in his minds eye. It was still all so crisp in his memory, as if it was not in the past. The sound of his running, the frantic thoughts of his mind searching for Kikyo as the forest had flashed by him. He could remember the pulse of the jewel in his palm, the scent of Kikyo's blood that had nearly stopped him in his tracks. The sound of her voice, the sight of her injured body was still so clear… Then there had been the sound of a bow's string snapping back, the arrow cutting through the air…

Then there had been Kagome.

"…Yes, Koyasha." He answered softly, "Someone shot me to that tree."

And he didn't even care when Koyasha laughed at him.

"But what the hell are you doing out here anyway?" he asked shortly after her laughter had died down.

Koyasha's face suddenly fell, "…Nothing."

InuYasha stared at her, waiting for a better answer. When he realized he wasn't going to hear anything else, he gave up.

"Keh. Stubborn brat."

Kagome glared at him, but went ignored. And Koyasha glared as well, the look almost deadly enough to scare a baby rabbit. It took all the will power he had for InuYasha not to laugh at his daughter.

"That's what mommy says about you." She told him loudly.

InuYasha almost started the insults, but stopped when he felt Kagome's hand brush against his necklace. So, instead, he growled. Koyasha growled back, but only for a while. She just couldn't hold the growl for nearly as long as her dad.

"Mommy should tell you to sit." She retaliated, not going to admit defeat. But the last thing she had expected her dad to do was plunge face first into the ground, the sound echoing off the buildings.

"What the…?" Kagome said aloud, standing by her daughter now due to quick reflexes gained from jumping away from InuYasha when she had sat him long ago.

"WHAT. THE. HELL!?" InuYasha yelled upon wrenching his face from the dirt.

Koyasha started to move behind her mother's leg to hide, "…Um… Sorry?"

"SORRY is not going to cut it!" InuYasha continued to yell, "Have YOU ever had to 'sit!'"

His ranting was cut short due to his daughter plummeting face first into the ground, leaves falling from the trees due to the vibrations caused from the fall. Kagome, yet again, evaded harm despite being so close the sat girl. But soon, the mother was back at her daughter's side, carefully prying her out of the ground, paying no attention to the hanyo not far away from them. And they half expected Koyasha to burst out in tears upon her being freed from the dirt, but all she said was "owwwwww…." as she began to laugh softly.

The relief that swept through InuYasha was indescribable as he came to kneel next to his daughter, wiping dirt from her face. It seemed as if his whole attitude and person had changed in that minute that he had seen his daughter go through what Kagome had done to him so many times in the past, and he let his daughter crawl into his arms.

"I'm sorry…" he said softly as he ignored Kagome's stare of disbelief.

"It's ok." Koyasha said with an unexpected smile, "But I'm not sorry I did it to you. It was funny."

InuYasha chuckled softly, "I bet your mother would say the same thing."

Kagome laughed softly as well from her spot across from them. Maybe they really could be a family… But she hadn't expected to be swept up off the ground at demonic speeds, wrapped in strong arms as her surrounding flew by her.

"InuYasha…?" she began, but stopped abruptly when they were outside the well house.

"Let's go home, Kagome," he said softly, "They've all missed you… Just like I've missed you."

"Home?" Koyasha suddenly asked from her spot upon her father's back, "Daddy, you're silly. We are home."

InuYasha smirked, looking over his shoulder to see his daughter's face.

"No we're not, Koyasha. This was your mother's home. But our home is somewhere else," he looked back down at Kagome, "Right?"

Kagome hesitated. She'd been gone for so long, she'd let the past become the past. Did she really want to return? Did she want to become a miko again, did she want to fight demons and face any new enemies that tried to come her way? So she turned her face away from her love's and stared at the ancient well, the magic around it a pulsing blue to her senses. Did she really think she could just ignore what had happened though? Could she forget the fights she had had against the dark hanyo of the past, against the wind goddess, the child of the mirror, the killing perfection, the band of seven, the cat demons, the panther god, and every other demon? Those fights were part of her, and she knew that. There was no way she could just let them fade into the past.

So she smiled softly, and looked back up at her child and InuYasha.

"Let's go."

And soon there was swirling blue around the three, and they touched the ground with inhuman grace. The sunlight shown down upon Kagome's face, the well house ceiling long gone.

And then she realized… she really was home. 

* * *

_If our paths do, indeed, cross one day my little brother, what shall this Sesshomaru do? It is too obvious that this Sesshomaru will not run from the likes of a hanyo, but what will you do? Will you run from me? Or shall you embrace your son with loving arms? Shall you not believe me, or will you for once put faith in your elder brother? _Sesshomaru asked himself, as if he were really speaking to InuYasha as he led his group.

Winds began to blow, playing with the silver strands of his long hair. And scents came to him, from far and wide. And the scent that was the sharpest, the most recognizable, was the one of his family. Of InuYasha. But he was not stopped nor slowed by it, he just continued to walk. There were things that were inevitable, things that were unavoidable. And he would be one of them one day, but not now. Sesshomaru may live a bit longer with his nephew in tow, and he would not make a move to change it. He knew he would not cause a confrontation with his younger brother, but he was so aware that one would one day happen…

And the wind died, his hair falling back down to rest against his back.

"Sire?" Rikuse asked behind him, attempting to catch up with him, "May I ask a question about my father?"

Sesshomaru's silence was his reply.

"…Was he really all that you said that he was?" the boy continued, managing to keep up with his lord's strides as he came up beside him.

Sesshomaru answered after a short pause of thought, "In this Sesshomaru's eyes he was."

A small smile was brought up upon Rikuse's face, "Do you think I will meet him one day, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"Perhaps." He answered without emotion, "But he may not be who you think he is."

Rikuse's smile widened, "What is his name, Sesshomaru-sama?"

Sesshomaru turned his gaze from the dirt road in front of them to his nephew, his emotions unreadable.

"His name is of no importance to you, child."

Rikuse's heart dropped, but he stood tall. If Sesshomaru didn't want him to know, there had to be a reason. He trusted his lord… his uncle.

"Do you know my mother's name?" he asked hopefully after a moment of silence, yearning for information on his family.

"…Her name was never important enough for this Sesshomaru to remember."

Rikuse stopped asking questions then, losing hope in his quest for knowledge. He let his walking pace return to normal, falling back behind, walking next to the woman that had raised him in her childhood. She looked down at him with soft, caring eyes as he didn't pay attention, and felt pity for him. She had lost her parents, like he had, but she had known them. He didn't. And what was worse was that his parents could still be living, but he would probably never know them because of Sesshomaru and his father's relationship. So, quietly, she whispered to him, fully aware that Sesshomaru would probably hear her.

"Rikuse-sama," Rin said quietly, slowly, "I know your mother's name, do you want to know it?"

Rikuse's face automatically lit up, "Yes!"

Rin smiled softly, "Her name was Kagome. She was a very nice lady, and was always nice to me when I saw her."

"Really?"

"Yes, Rikuse-sama, she was a very good lady. I always liked her."

Rikuse looked happy for a slight moment, glad for this knowledge. But then, suddenly, his face dropped into a type of sorrow.

"Rin-sama, if she was so nice," Rikuse began softly, sadly, "then why did she leave me behind?... Why didn't she want me?"

Rin paused, unable to answer. She didn't know, and really, she hadn't thought about it. It was true that Kagome was a nice lady, and it really didn't make sense that she would leave her own baby behind. And, somehow, she couldn't imagine InuYasha leaving his own child behind either. But before she could even open her mouth to answer the young one, Sesshomaru spoke up.

"Child, when this Sesshomaru found you, you were dead," his voice was emotionless as usual, holding no care for what his words meant to the young child, "My sword, Tenseiga, holds the power to bring the dead back from the afterlife, restoring their life. I used that power on you, due to the words of Rin. You were dead, and your mother or father must have left your body underneath the tree as your final resting place. Neither of them is aware of your existence since your travels started with this Sesshomaru."

Rikuse's eyes widened, and he stopped walking, "…I was dead, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"At one point in time, you were," the demon lord said coldly, "but you are no more."

And, after a moment, the child began to walk again. He began to realize when his first life was over, his real life had begun. His life with his lord, with Sesshomaru, was the one that must be meant to be. Not the one with his real parents. The reasons evaded him, but he knew he had to just accept it. As much as he didn't like it, he knew it was a fact. But maybe, one day, if he was lucky, he would meet his parents. That was, if Sesshomaru-sama would allow him. Sesshomaru knew what was best for him, and he believed that. Besides, Sesshomaru and Rin were the only real people that had ever been there for him, Rin more than Sesshomaru. Jaken didn't really matter. Yet, Sesshomaru had given him a second shot at life. He was grateful for that.

"Rikuse-sama," Rin said quietly, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Things happen for a reason. My parents died, and so did I. But Sesshomaru-sama brought me back, and I'm happy for my life with him. And, maybe, someday you'll be able to meet your family. I can almost guarantee you will," she said lowering her voice a little bit more, smiling, "Sesshomaru-sama and your father always seem to run into each other one way or another."

Rikuse faked a smile, looking up at her. To him, this girl, no matter her age, was his mother. 

* * *

"Mommy, am I dreaming?" Koyasha asked in awe, sliding down from her father's back and looking around at the feudal Japan.

"No, darling," Kagome smiled, climbing out of InuYasha's arms and kneeling down beside her daughter with a smile, "This is real. I promise."

InuYasha, from behind his family, smiled softly as well. He was home, and they were home. Finally, he could be with his love, with Kagome. And now, he could be with… with his child.

"Daddy?" Koyasha said, running up to her father and grabbing a hold of his leg, "Where do you live?"

He smirked, "Where ever I feel like staying."

Koyasha gave him a confused look, "Like camping?"

Kagome decided to intervene then, speaking before InuYasha could say anything, "Something like that darling."

"Cool!" she said enthusiastically, with a great smile, "Are we gonna camp too?"

Kagome smiled lightly, "I don't know darli—"

But before she could finish her sentence she heard a yell, and then saw a purple robed man come running their way, a group of what looked like children chasing after him.

"InuYasha! InuYasha, please! Please help me!" the man screamed as he came their way, a desperate look upon his face, "She sent them after me!! I can't escape on my own!! Please, help!!"

InuYasha, sighing, pushed the girls to the side, moving out of the way as the group came ever so close to them.

"Miroku, aren't they supposed to listen to you?"

"They won't listen! She's brainwashed them! She's turned them into her evil minions!! Pl—" Miroku screamed again, but before he could finish, fell flat on his face, his movements obviously impaired by alcohol.

Kagome looked on incredulously, her mouth slightly open.

"Is he… is he drunk?"

"Probably," InuYasha answered, "After Sango gave birth to the sixth kid, he started drinking…"

"Sixth?!"

"She's got seven now, plus the one she adopted – the teen standing over there, and the youngest is about… sixth months old. She ended up cranking out two sets of twins too," He said simply, looking over at her, and then starting to walk over to where all the children, besides the teen who stood of to the side, now dog piled their father, "C'mon, let's go."

Kagome, a bit stunned, scooped up Koyasha and followed behind InuYasha, watching the pile of kids with curious eyes.

"Kids!" InuYasha called out, his voice louder than all of their laughter, "Kids, get off of him!"

"But momma said to take him back home!" A little girl responded, her appearance showing that she couldn't be older than four.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll carry 'im. Now get off of him!"

At his words the children scrambled off of the monk, eventually coming to stand side by side of one another, watching InuYasha sling their father over his shoulder.

"Hey… Kyo," a little girl said, leaning towards her brother, their appearances that of five year old fraternal twins, "Who are those two?"

"That's Kagome, Kyoko," said the teen coming to walk over to the two, "Mother and Father's old friend."

"Yeah," InuYasha confirmed, "And that's my kid."

"You've got a kid?" the teen asked, a grin on her face "You actually managed to get lucky?"

InuYasha glared as Miroku mumbled incoherently on his shoulder, "Watch your mouth Amaya."

She laughed, then took the hand of a small boy, no older than two, "Let's go."

InuYasha nodded, motioning for Kagome to follow, Koyasha clinging to her mother's neck.

"Momma?" Koyasha whispered.

"Yes baby?"

"Why is that man crazy?"

InuYasha laughed at his daughter's words from the front of the group. 

* * *

There were eight of them.

Amaya, the adopted one at fifteen, was the oldest.

Taji was the second oldest and first born male, at six.

Kyo and Kyoko, the first set of twins with both boy and girl, were five.

Ai was the first female at four and a half.

Seiichi and Suichi were the second set of twins, both boys, at two.

Then there was Naomi, the youngest girl and youngest in the family, at six months old.

And, of course, Kagome had been tackled at the first sight by Sango.

"Oh my god Kagome!" she said, scrambling off the girl, "You're back!"

"Yes," Kagome laughed, bringing herself to a sitting position, "Yes, I am."

"Here's your drunk." InuYasha said, unceremoniously dropping Miroku on the wooden floor.

Sango glared at him for a moment, but then turned her attention back to Kagome, who now held Koyasha in her lap.

"Who is that Kagome?"

"I'm Koyasha!" the pink haired girl said with glee, a wide smile planted on her face, "Kagome is my mommy!"

Sango's eyes widened slightly, "She is?"

"Yep. And InuYasha is my daddy! But he didn't know about me until yesterday…"

Sango looked shocked for a moment, but then burst out in laughter, falling on her side. Kagome just stared for a moment, as did InuYasha, while Koyasha giggled.

"I knew it had to be something like that when you left Kagome," Sango began to explain through her laughter as she sat back up, "But… I never thought you would have actually done _that _with _him._"

InuYasha's expression turned to annoyed.

"Why does everyone find that so god damn unbelievable?" he spat out, "It's not like I couldn't get a girl before her."

Kagome glared, and InuYasha realized what he had said.

"Not to mean that I would have anyone else!" he said with a nervous laughter.

"Nice save…" Miroku mumbled, rolling himself onto his back and smiling up at Sango with a guilty smile, "…I love you babe."

"Not a nice save." Sango said with a glare.

Miroku closed his eyes and sighed, "What must I do this time to bring your love back into my life?"

"Don't get drunk."

One of Miroku's eyebrows rose, "That's al—? I mean, of course dear."

Her glare faded away as a baby girl crawled to her side, the child's black hair curtaining her eyes, and Sango took her into her lap as she brushed the child's bangs out of her eyes.

"…And you get baby duty for a week."

Miroku moaned.

"Stop whining, monk," InuYasha said in annoyance, "You're the one who went and got drunk and didn't come back for a week or whatever."

If Miroku would have known the significance of holding up his middle finger to InuYasha, he probably would have flipped the hanyo off. But instead he just covered his eyes with his hand and drifted back off into unconsciousness.

"MOM!!" a boy suddenly yelled, "AMAYA IS FIGHTING WITH SEIICHI AND SUICHI AGAIN!!"

Sango sighed, "Who's winning?!"

"Amaya has them both pinned down by their throats!"

"Did they deserve it?!"

"YES!!" Amaya's angry but amused voice came, as well as the sounds of two boys struggling.

"I don't want any deaths!" She called out, then turned her attention back to Kagome, "After the third, it doesn't matter as long as they aren't going to die."

Kagome smiled, laughing slightly.

"Momma?" Ai said as she came into the rule, her black hair messy upon her head, "Where's Kirara?" 

* * *

Rikuse smiled at the small creature, petting its head as it purred. It was a cute thing he had stumbled upon, a small three tailed cat with a black diamond shape upon its head. It had allowed him to carry it, and now as he walked, he pet it absent mindedly. Rin, who walked beside him, looked at the cat demon, but didn't pet it.

"You know, you won't be allowed to keep the cat demon, Rikuse-sama."

"I know," he said with a sad smile.

And as he said those words the small cat jumped out of his arms, running off. Rikuse just looked at it sadly for a moment as it ran off, but then ran up to walk beside his lord. And the cat demon, known to Rin as Kirara, ran off into the forests, finding her way back home.

As the cat left, Rikuse couldn't help but wonder why the cat held a scent on it's fur that was so much like his.

And when the small cat scrambled back in the household of her owner and family, InuYasha raised an eyebrow at her. She smelt of Sesshomaru, his half brother.

"Where have you been?" Sango asked as the cat curled up in her lap, attempting to hide form the children as long as possible.

Kirara just purred in response.

"She smells like Sesshomaru…" InuYasha said quietly, as the wind swept through the open door, "…And that bastard is coming this way."

* * *

**Is that a cliff hanger? I think it is! -gasp- You'll only find out the next part of the story if you review!! Love all ya, thanks for reading :D**


	7. He's supposed to be dead

InuYasha dashed outside, Tetsusaiga held high in his arms, all his senses alert. He didn't want to have to deal with Sesshomaru, especially now that his daughter was around. But, much out of his notice, Koyasha walked out of the house to follow him, her pink hair glistening in the sun as she smiled curiously. She came to stand behind her father, unnoticed.

"Daddy?"

InuYasha about jumped a foot off the ground, startled by the small part demon.

"Daddy," she continued, smiling while holding back her laughter, "what are you getting ready to fight?"

InuYasha turned his attention back to the surrounding forests, regaining his composure.

"Your half-uncle," He answered with obvious hate towards the man by the sound of his voice, "My half-brother."

"Huh?! I have another uncle?!" the small girl exclaimed in surprise, whipping her head around to glare at her mother, who was standing at the doorway of the house, "Why didn't you tell me mommy?!!!"

"Because you didn't need to know," InuYasha answered before Kagome could, "Sesshomaru doesn't care about me, and he doesn't care about you. It would be best if you never even met him. But apparently, you're going to have to."

Koyasha sighed, folding her arms across her chest as her ears flattened against her head, "Fine."

InuYasha had to hold back his laughter when he looked down at the girl, amused at the sight of her.

"So you've managed to survive all these years without your miko, have you baby brother?"

InuYasha immediately turned his attention to the direction the voice was coming from, his eyes met with the sight of his elder demon half brother, Sesshomaru of the West.

"What do you want, Sesshomaru!?" InuYasha replied angrily, moving to stand in front of Koyasha, whom know had her full attention on the scene in front of her, no fear existing in her mind.

"This Sesshomaru's reasons for being here have nothing to do with you, you worthless hanyo," the demon said coldly, his eyes cold and emotionless, "...I see you have finally retrieved your miko."

Kagome flinched. Sesshomaru had known she was pregnant, and he had had that meeting with her not long before InuYasha had come to get her.

"What's it to you?" InuYasha spat out.

Sesshomaru didn't answer, just looked down at the flash of pink he saw behind InuYasha's legs. Koyasha peeked out behind the red clothed legs to look back at the demon lord, scratching her nose as her eyes widened.

"Where is he?!" She asked the demon lord, her golden eyes demanding.

Sesshomaru's head tilted to one side, "Who are you to speak to me in such a manner, child?"

"She's got nothing to do with yo—" InuYasha began, only to be interrupted by his daughter.

"My name is Koyasha," she answered, "And where is he?"

"Whom do you speak of child?" Sesshomaru looked slightly bored.

"I dunno his name! But I can smell him! He smells like me! And he's supposed to be dead!" Koyasha then boldly stood out from behind her father's legs, trying to be brave.

But before she could say another word Kagome came out to kneel behind her, wrapping her arms around the child.

"Koyasha," Kagome spoke in motherly tones, "Please, this is not the time–"

"Silence, miko," Sesshomaru interrupted, not turning to look at different direction as he spoke to someone out of everyone's vision, "Rikuse, come out here. I know you followed me."

Everyone watched curiously as a small boy walked up behind Sesshomaru, standing beside the great dog demon lord, his hand pinching the man's pants. His golden eyes looked up to meet the daiyokai's.

"I'm sorry Sesshomaru-sama…" he muttered, his words heard only by Koyasha and InuYasha because of their ears, "…I was curious."

"Who is that…?" Kagome muttered, starting to walk towards the daiyokai and child, ignoring InuYasha completely, slightly dazed at the boy's similarities to her daughter, "Sesshomaru… _who is that?_"

Kagome stopped dead when a young woman burst forth from the trees, panting, her black hair flying in her face.

"Rikuse-sama!!!" the girl yelled, worry and a bit of anger in her eyes, "Rikuse-sama, you were forbidden to leave me and Jaken-sama! Why did you sneak off— oh… Hi Kagome-chan!!!"

Kagome suddenly recognized the girl as a much older Rin, but her attention wasn't held for long, and she began to walk toward the opposing group again, Sesshomaru still as silent as ever.

"Sesshomaru-sama?" The boy asked curiously, ignoring his adoptive mother, "Is that man back there your half-brother?"

Sesshomaru was silent, his eyes on the miko.

"And is she...?"

There was only silence to follow, until the daiyokai spoke to the miko.

"It does not matter who this child is, miko, nor what ties you think he may have to you." His eyes were full of ice, "This Sesshomaru found the child dead underneath a tree near the bone eater's well, abandoned."

Kagome's eyes were suddenly full of fire as she stopped not a foot in front of Sesshomaru, "He was not abandoned!"

"Then explain why he was there, left in the wild alone where a number of demons could have eaten him, dead."

"He was born dead, you stubborn jackass!" Kagome yelled, all memories or thoughts of what encounters she had had with Sesshomaru gone, "We buried him underneath the Goshinboku!"

"He was obviously not buried—"

"Don't ask me why he wasn't, because to this day I can remember the pain I felt as a mother _burying her son's body_!"

Sesshomaru didn't speak as she continued on.

"The only way that that child could be alive is because of you, Sesshomaru! You and Tenseiga! But how he crossed through the portal in the well is beyond me!"

Sesshomaru paused, "Portal?"

Kagome's eyes widened as she heard InuYasha curse loudly in the background.

"...Nothing." she quickly answered, "Nothing that is of your business, at least."

"I would think it is—" Sesshomaru began, but Rikuse interrupted.

"Sesshomaru-sama, is she my mother?!" he asked loudly, as he had gone unnoticed and ignored for the duration of his lord's and the miko's argument as he had asked the same question over and over.

Sesshomaru looked down at him, his golden eyes full of annoyance. Rikuse almost shrank back, but somehow remained in place.

"Is she?" he asked again weakly.

Sesshomaru turned his eyes away from the child, drawing Tokijin. In an instant InuYasha's blade was against his, Kagome now off to the side, looking a bit emotionally shaken.

"What the fuck is going on, Sesshomaru!?" InuYasha demanded, pushing his brother away and jumping back, only to charge him again.

"I do not have to explain myself to the likes of you, hanyo." Sesshomaru answered plainly as sparks flew from his blade upon impact with Tetsusaiga.

"The fuck you do!"

Sesshomaru just left his expression emotionless, effortlessly fending off his brother's attacks. And when they separated, both sailing through the air to land yards apart, the battle was paused as Koyasha came to stand in front of her father.

"Daddy, you're a butthead." She said plainly as he father looked at her strangely, "You're fighting when mommy needs you! Look at her!"

InuYasha then turned his head to look Kagome's way. She was on her knees, staring at the child standing next to Sesshomaru, looking absolutely shaken up. Automatically InuYasha dropped Tetsusaiga and was at her side, kneeling in front of her.

"Kagome..."

"He was dead..." She said shakily, looking into InuYasha's eyes, "He was _born_dead... in my time..." she looked up for a moment, her eyes widening, "Koyasha!"

InuYasha automatically whipped his head around to see his daughter standing in front of Sesshomaru, glaring up at him.

"Give me my brother back, meanie." She demanded, unknowing that she had just scared her father half to death, "I know it's him."

Rikuse looked at Koyasha with strange eyes, entranced by the way she was standing up to his lord. He had never seen anyone do something like this before and live.

"You say he is your brother, child?"

"Yeah, I know he is." Koyasha answered the yokai, "He looks like me and smells like me, just like a twin would."

"A twin?"

"Yeah, mommy had me and him, but he is supposed to be dead. I don't care though. Give him back!"

Before Sesshomaru could speak to the girl, Koyasha was swept up into a teen's arms unexpectedly.

"Amaya!" the child exclaimed, looking up at the teen.

"Shhh," the girl said, silencing the child as she shifted the hilt of her sword in her hand.

"But Amaya—"

"Be quiet Koyasha." She repeated, looking up to address Sesshomaru as she tightened her grip on her weapon.

"Such a weapon will not defeat this Sesshomaru," the demon said blandly, glancing at her sword.

"I know, I'm not stupid," she replied, "I was using it to scare off my brothers."

Sesshomaru said nothing.

"So, anyways, how about we just settle this whole matter," she proposed, "I'll tell you what that whole 'portal' thing is about if you tell me who that kid's parents are."

Sesshomaru paused, "...Agreed."

Amaya then dropped Koyasha on the ground, whom landed safely, "Go run off to your mother."

The child smiled, obeying.

"So, from what I understand, throughout Kagome's travels with my adoptive parents and InuYasha, she was in a state of constant time travel. Apparently there was this well, the one you found the boy by, that allowed her to travel from her birth time to this era. There was something about some jewel along with that, but I don't know the whole story." She said, spewing out information that none of the group would have ever told Sesshomaru, "Well, you know that tree, the Goshinboku? That was the tree that InuYasha got himself shot to, I think. And if that tree is still there in Kagome's time, it would only make sense for Kagome to bury her dead son underneath that spot. Now I have no god damn idea how that could have transported the child here since it wasn't the well, but maybe the well's power did something... but whatever. That's what the portal is, a pathway between times. Now it's your turn."

"You expect this Sesshomaru to be fooled by that?"

"I don't expect you to be fooled by the truth. Think about it. Look at her clothes and Koyasha's clothes. I have never seen anything like those in my entire lifetime, and I doubt you have. And the way she acts? I haven't seen any mortal woman in my lifetime who would dare to express herself in the way she does... well, most average women, but whatever. It explains a lot if you ask me. It wouldn't be out of the norm, I've seen plenty of stranger things."

Sesshomaru didn't speak for a while, thinking about what he had just been told. It did make some sense he guessed, but time travel just seemed so... impossible. But then again, he possessed a sword that could bring back the dead for a second chance at life. And that... theory did explain a lot of strange things the woman had done in his past encounters with her. It would also explain a lot of the weird, out of place items InuYasha would sometimes possess...

"So," Amaya said impatiently, "It's your turn."

Sesshomaru glared at the girl, "I will not take orders from the likes of you."

"I never ordered you to do anything, I'm just reminding you to hold up the end of your agreement. And if you don't, one of your status would certainly have to fall upon his own sword rather than live with the dishonor."

Sesshomaru's glare did not lessen, "You dare to—"

"Just tell me who the kid's parents are."

The daiyokai paused, but then answered blandly and without emotion.

"I am this child's uncle."

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry at how suckish this chapter is. It was mostly a filler since I have no ideas XD to be of help readers, post what YOU think should happen next, for my amusement and possibly for the sake of the story.  
oh, and btw, Maistwin has shown some interest in this story again, but i doubt she'll be coming back to write with me. Oh well...  
**

**Review and TELL ME YOUR IDEAS! Thank you for reading!  
**


	8. Threats

InuYasha just stared, holding Kagome as she began to cry into her palms. He watched Amaya stand up to the man that was his half brother without fear in her heart, the girl most likely aware of his status since her previous comment about him. And then, mentally, a hammer was dropped on his head.

He had _two_ kids now! And one of them had been raised by _Sesshomaru_! Of all the god damn people in Japan, it just had to be Sesshomaru.

"Well," InuYasha spoke up loudly, "If he's my kid, hand him over!"

And the last thing he expected to happen to him was to be slapped. 

"That isn't our decision, InuYasha!" Kagome said, a tear still streaking down her face as her hand was still held fast to the spot where InuYasha's cheek now stung with pain, "We did not raise him! Well... I didn't raise him. It's up to him, and it's up to Sesshomaru! He's earned that right, he's raised the boy!"

InuYasha was wide eyed at his love, surprised by her outlook on this situation. Another hammer fell on his head, his inner self trying to knock him out of his stupidity. Kagome was – as much as he hated to admit it – right about his brother being given such a choice. Sesshomaru was surprised as well, but held a certain respect for the miko now that he knew she realized such a thing. Maybe humans did have some sense, in the rare times like these.

"Well," Amaya began, "I've got seven other brats to deal with, not counting these two," she motioned at Koyasha and Rikuse with her free hand, "So you guys figure out the rest of this."

Then, absent mindedly brushing brown bangs out of her blue eyes, Amaya turned on her heels, eyes peeled for the set of twin boys hiding just behind the house, sword held ready. When she spotted them, she was gone before anyone could say anything or even blink. Sesshomaru just watched her leave with a bored expression.

"Mommy?" Koyasha asked, crawling up her father's back to sit on his shoulder, looking down upon her mother, "Why are you sad? You shouldn't be sad – you should be happy! Brother is alive!"

Kagome chocked out a sob, "I know darling, I know..."

"Then stop crying," she said plainly, jumping off of her father's shoulder to land softly on her mother's knees, pulling the woman's hands away from her face, "Stop crying and smile."

Kagome, for sake of her daughter, chocked back her tears and smiled ever so slightly. Koyasha grinned widely.

"I wanna meet brother!" she announced, "But I think that meanie won't let me... I think he has a stick shoved up where the sun don't shine – like great grandpa did!"

At Sesshomaru's icy glare Kagome couldn't help but smile widely at her daughter's comment, InuYasha obviously holding back the fits of laughter as he shook silently.

* * *

It was strange how things had unraveled from that point on. Koyasha had been the one to talk Sesshomaru into letting Rikuse stay the night, narrowly avoiding death and nearly giving her mother and father heart attacks a good number of times with her smart mouth. But, yet, Sesshomaru had allowed the boy to do as he wished and that he would return in a week's time if the child still wished to continue with him. Koyasha had been overjoyed that she had gotten much more than the single night she had argued for and automatically tried to befriend the boy. But Rikuse, although he wanted to meet his parents, seemed reluctant to engage in any contact with Koyasha. 

InuYasha guessed it was the girl's personality that scared the young boy. You didn't see girls like Kagome, or like Koyasha, in this time at all. Women were supposed to be quiet and obedient in this time. InuYasha would probably shoot himself the day that Kagome was obedient. Well, he would if he even _knew _what a modern day 9 millimeter handgun was. But he himself made no attempt to come into contact with his son. He just sat back and watched the child steal glances at him and Kagome, the boy always quick to turn away when he saw the golden eyed stare upon him. He seemed shy... nothing like either of his parents and definitely nothing like Sesshomaru and his wards. 

Rikuse, in truth, was scared shitless. He had no idea who these people were. And that girl – his twin sister – scared him even more than InuYasha did. He had thought Rin was outgoing! But this girl... she was pure madness. But he tried to be polite, despite the level of fear he was experiencing. He would sit with the pink haired wonder and watch her with cautious eyes, taking in every word she said. She might be freaky, but she was a fountain of information. And Rikuse had wanted such information ever since his mind could comprehend such things. The boy was young, but he seemed wiser than his age should be. So he soaked up the knowledge – what little there actually was – that spouted from the girl's mouth, occasionally stealing glances at the people around him. The children, like Koyasha, seemed to welcome him as well. It made him uncomfortable in a way. When he had gone into a village with Rin, those few rare times, people had stayed as far away from them as possible. No one had ever tried to welcome him or trust him. But now all these people were. He didn't understand it. 

And what he really didn't understand is why the woman who was supposedly his mother wasn't crying all over him like a normal woman of the time would.

But then again, if the daughter represented the mother in any way... you couldn't say his mother was _normal _if that was the case. 

So he just stole glances of her. She was really pretty, and she really did seem to love his lord's half brother. The hanyo that was supposed to be his father... He was probably the most normal one here. 

_So it seems the men in my family carry the gene of sanity, _the boy thought blandly, quickly turning his gaze away when his golden eye's met the hanyo's golden eyes.

But, little to his knowledge, his thought was way off track. He hadn't yet met his great grandfather – that much was obvious. And his other uncle wasn't exactly sane either. Sanity didn't exactly run in his family. His grandfather on his father's side had two mistresses, three swords, ruled over a fourth of Japan, and died in a mansion fire saving InuYasha and the hanyo's mother. His uncle was the coldest and most feared yokai in all of Japan, and in the words Koyasha stated "has a stick shoved up where the sun don't shine." His father was hanyo, rejected by both man and demon, the killer of Naraku, and wielded Tetsusaiga. His mother was a time traveling miko who had broken the Shikon no Tama, threatened the safety of the entire space time continuum, and seen herself in her former life. Literally.

There was not a shred of sanity _left _in his bloodline. Yet, they left him in the dark about that fact. What five year old wants to know that he's doomed to be part of an insane family?

"Yo, Rikuse." InuYasha suddenly spoke up as he poked at the fire with a stick, the lights casting ghostly shadows on the walls of the hut, "My brother was good to you right? 'Cause if he wasn't..."

"No, InuYasha-sama," Rikuse said timidly, "Sesshomaru-sama and Rin-sama took great care of me!"

"Hn," InuYasha mumbled, sounding surprisingly like Sesshomaru, "If you say so. And don't use that fucking '-sama' crap. I'm your father after all – just use my name."

Rikuse nodded timidly. Had he angered InuYasha...?

"Don't worry, darling," Kagome spoke up, speaking to the child for the first time, "He's always like this – he treats everyone like that. It's nothing personal. He's just grumpy."

"Grumpy!" the hanyo shot back at the miko, "Who you callin' grumpy!"

She shook her head with a small smile, "You."

He growled at her and opened his mouth to speak, but a single look from her shut him up. He was _not _going to be sat. Koyasha giggled from the spot in her mothers laugh until quiet fell.

Rikuse nervously ran his fingers through his hair, turning his gaze towards Kagome, "You... You're my mother, right?"

She smiled, and to his surprise, it warmed his heart as she spoke, "Yes."

"Then... Then..." he paused, still nervous, "Then I want you to know... I never blamed you..."

The woman stared at him for a moment, and he continued.

"I never blamed you for leaving me..."

The silence that followed was unnerving. Kagome was just looking at him with this distant expression, his eyes connecting with hers. She didn't say anything and he didn't dare break away from her stare. He almost felt sick. Why wasn't she doing anything...?

"Rikuse, dear..." she mumbled finally, her voice quiet and soft, "Come here."

The boy stole a glance at the hanyo that was his father. The man wasn't paying attention to him. He was watching Kagome with careful, curious eyes. So, nervously, Rikuse stood and walked over to his mother, stopping just in her arms reach. She looked up at him, the boy seeing the tears welling in her eyes for the first time. For a moment, nothing happened. The two were just there, looking at one another in the silence, unmoving and unspeaking. Then, slowly and quietly, Kagome wrapped her arms around the little boy, pulling him into her lap and deeper into her embrace. A few tears spilled over into his hair.

"Thank you, darling," she muttered to him and only to him, planning to hold him there until the end of time, "...Thank you..." 

* * *

InuYasha's eyes snapped open wide, his body tense. The people around him did nothing, just continued sleeping without disturbance. His children slept beside him, as did Kagome, Koyasha and Rikuse cuddled close on the space that was Kagome's lap. The monk and demon slayer's family were sound asleep in their pile of bodies as well, none of them giving a care about who's hand was on who's ass or who's fingers were up who's nose in their sleep.

InuYasha's right eye gave a violent twitch as a slight breeze came up.

There was a scent floating on the air, one with deadly familiarity for him. It wasn't a threat, nor was it dangerous. But it would fuck his life up to no end if he left it unattended...

What would he do?

What _could _he do?

He couldn't kill the bitch – there would be screaming, blood, and a body on his hands. He'd be caught.

He couldn't turn her down – she was as persistent as Koga was with Kagome when it came to him. He'd turned her down before; he'd attempted to cut her heart into ribbons with razor sharp words. They just bounced right off of her like they were nothing. 

He couldn't chase her away – she always came running back. 

He couldn't scare her away – fuck, even if he turned demon right now she'd be all over him. She was obsessive... Dangerously and annoyingly obsessive.

And he couldn't run away. No, he _would not _run away. Not now, with Kagome back and his kids around. He had something to stick around for now. There was no fucking way he was gonna turn on his heels and run from some human pain in the ass. 

Now he could hear the footsteps on the ground not to far away. He glared at the few flames that had once been the roaring fire. They were giving him away... So, simply, he removed his fire rat robe and threw it on top of the pathetic flames. The smoldered and died, smoke sneaking up from underneath the cloth. The footsteps paused for a minute, but continued. 

_Fucking bitch..._InuYasha cursed underneath his breath. She was coming closer. 

He had no choice... he had no god damn choice.

Silently and without disturbing anyone the hanyo stood, walking out of the hut unnoticed. He walked out into the clearing in front of the house, and stopped underneath the moonlight. Golden eyes scanned the trees around the secluded home's grounds, glinting in the silver light of the moon. They found the spot where the scent came quickly, the place where the footsteps had come to a halt. He glared.

"I know you're there, woman." He said quietly enough for her to hear, dread dripping from his tone.

He was going to fucking kill this woman if she destroyed his life... After all that he had worked for to get Kagome to forgive him and love him, he wasn't going to let this chick ruin it all. She wasn't going to get what she wanted, no matter what the past said.

He watched her step from the trees, her white smile glinting in the moonlight. Her long black hair was pulled back into a mess upon her head, the blue colored kimono she wore appearing silver in the black of night. Her striking blue eyes were focused on him, enthralled by his form. They were full of love. A love he didn't want, a love he didn't return and would never return.

At this point, he would have much rather preferred Kikyo. At least she had a _reason_ to try and make his life miserable.

"Stop following me." The hanyo demanded coldly, golden eyes glaring the holes in her chest he so dearly wished would appear, "I don't want you. Get that through your head."

The woman approached, her smile turning into a pout.

"Yes you do," he voice was smooth and musical, grinding holes into InuYasha's eardrums, "I know you do."

"What happened then... the person you encountered was not me." InuYasha spat out, venom in his words, "Now leave me be and don't return."

"You know I can't do that, my love. You're all alone and without a family." InuYasha's right eye twitched at the mention of a family. He did have a family. A family he loved and a family he would never in his life give up for a whore like her...

"Someone told me about how you destroyed the spider hanyo," she continued, "And how you loved the strangely dressed girl. She left you didn't she?"

InuYasha remained silent and as cold as Sesshomaru. She didn't need to know anything about his life.

"And that Kikyo woman, she left you too, didn't she?"

Kikyo? Yeah, she left him. She went to the pits of hell without him. Not going with her was something he would never regret.

"Then come with me, dear. I'll be your wife; I'll replace those women that left you. I won't leave you either, I'll be loyal. _I _won't chase after wolf demons."

InuYasha growled loudly enough for her to hear, hoping it would scare her. She remained unphased.

"Who is telling you these things?" he demanded.

"A kind old woman I met in a village."

The hanyo glared at nothing, "Was her name Kaede?"

The girl cocked her head to one side, "You know of her?"

He was going to murder that old hag when he went back to the village!

"I don't care what you say, woman. I'm fine without you. I don't want you. Go find a life with some mortal and forget the past."

"But, dear, I don't want a mortal. I want an inu-hanyo like you." She said, "And why do you tell me to forget of the past? It was the day we met, the day we fell in lov—!"

"I did not fall in love with you!" InuYasha spat out, "It was one day, not even half of an hour. My mind was clouded and I was confused. Leave me be and let me rest!"

"No! I love you, darling! I'm not leaving until you are mine and no one else's! I'll kill anyone who gets in my way! I love you – no one else can have you!"

And here was the all predictable turn in the conversation. Whenever he confronted her she went on this role about how only she would have him and she would hunt him until the day she died. She'd stated she'd kill anyone in her way a couple times before this, but he took no mind of it. She was harmless. And even if she wasn't, she couldn't overpower him.

Opening his mouth to respond to her and tell her to leave again, he heard the flap from the entrance of the hut open. He froze.

"Daddy?" came a groggy voice of a five year old, a small hand clamping onto the hand he held at his side, "Who are you talking to?"

He could feel the anger rolling off of the woman's aura in waves, and instinctively he pushed Koyasha a bit more behind himself, shielding her. 

"You are that little runt's father!" the woman was enraged.

"What of it?" InuYasha covered up the growl in his voice, as not to frighten the girl behind him.

The woman said nothing for a moment, visible fire burning in her brown eyes through the dark of night. InuYasha tensed, waiting...

Then she turned on her heels, turning her back to him and walking back into the forest.

"InuYasha, dear," the woman said with a calmer tone as she disappeared into the trees, "The child is in my way."

InuYasha just watched the woman walk away, scooping Koyasha up into his arms as he walked back towards the hut. Yes, the woman had threatened his daughter. But her words were empty, her threat would stay unfulfilled. After all, she was just a spoiled human girl. What could she do to him? Not much, that was what.

But little to his knowledge this woman was much more dangerous than he was thought. In the end, she'd probably end up being a more challenging enemy than Naraku.


	9. Women and Wolves

_Kagome lay silently in the field as Shippo slept on her stomach, the grasses around her waving softly in the breeze. The sky above her carried wisps of clouds, the sun hiding behind them and casting a shadow upon the world every few minutes. There was no yelling, no pain. Not a demon was around. It was... peace. Peace in a time of the Warring States. And Kagome intended to soak up every god damn second of this peace. Heaven knew it wouldn't last forever..._

_A sharp pinch on her cheek came out of nowhere, her hand automatically coming to smack the spot. A small groan came to her ears as she pulled her hand away, a small flea demon in immense amounts of pain as he lay squashed on her palm. _

"_Kagome-sama..." it mumbled, snapping back into a non-squished form, "It is nice to see you too."_

"_Sorry Myoga," Kagome replied with a smile, "But you should have learned not to greet people by drinking their blood by now." _

_The small demon made a movement similar to wiping his mouth, though he possessed only a cone-like needle for a mouth._

"_Indeed, Kagome-sama. But your beautiful skin is just so inviting..."_

_Kagome shook her head with a small smile as the flea continued on._

"_Have you seen InuYasha-sama?"_

_Kagome turned her gaze towards the sky, her face falling._

"_He won't talk to me. He won't look at me." She said sullenly, "I don't know where he is – he's never around. He just... avoids me completely."_

_Myoga laughed quietly then, enraging something in Kagome's mind._

"_What's so funny?!" Kagome suddenly snapped at the insect, her gaze turning into a glare, "If you know something I don't, you'd better tell me!"_

_Myoga looked slightly taken a back, but started speaking none the less, "InuYasha-sama's reason for avoiding you is not because of you Kagome-sama. It is because of what is happening to him."_

_Kagome replied with a confused look, "What... What is happening to him? Is this why you came to see him?"_

_The flea chuckled again, "Yes, Kagome-sama. You have seen the true form of Sesshomaru-sama, have you not?"_

_Kagome nodded, wondering where this was going._

"_Then you can understand that the human appearances demons like Sesshomaru-sama cast are merely an illusion. Sesshomaru-sama is a dog – a beast. His father was as well, and his father's father. And, as I have come to understand, mortal beasts have a certain time in the year that they reproduce the most, correct?"_

_Kagome nodded, still confused out of her mind._

"_Well, demons undergo a similar thing. They have a time in the year, specific to each demonic race, when it is most favorable to mate. The inu yokai mate around this time, Kagome-sama."_

_Kagome just looked at the flea, not following a word he said._

_The flea sighed, "Well, you see, demons control this urge very well. If you came across Sesshomaru-sama this very day he would seem no different. And this urge is an urge humans do not experience. Humans reproduce any time they wish."_

_Kagome nodded absentmindedly._

"_So, since InuYasha is both demon and human, this urge is randomized. Some years it will not come around – in fact, most years he won't experience a thing. But years like this, apparently, he does feel the urge. He is not like Sesshomaru-sama or other inu yokai. He cannot control his urge easily. It takes all of his concentration and will. Even the tiniest slip up would make him submit to his demonic urges."_

_Kagome suddenly understood, "So he's steering clear of me because he doesn't want to...?"_

_Myoga nodded. A weight lifted off of Kagome's shoulders..._

_...Off in the distance, InuYasha felled another innocent tree in his path._

_Damn his father. Damn his demonic blood. Damn his instincts. He hated this. He fucking hated this. He couldn't control himself. Every time he looked at Kagome he wanted to..._

_Another tree felled._

Don't think of her, _he told himself, _don't think of her and you'll be fine.

_But his attempts failed miserably. He wanted her. He wanted to make her his. He wanted to feel her, to have her as his own, to hold on to her and never let her out of his grasp. He wanted her to know pleasure, to—_

_Another tree died underneath the claws of the frustrated inu hanyo as he tried to distract his thoughts. _

_God damn mating instincts!_

_Stopping his massacre of innocent trees that had done nothing but provide him with shade, he trudged down the dirt path the exact opposite of where Kagome was. He was going to get as far away from her as possible until this wore off and then run back to her with some type of excuses and apologies. He just had to wait it out..._

_His foot fell through the air. Apparently, there was not ground for it to land on._

_Seconds later he found his leg knee deep in a spring. He cursed. Apparently, this was the worst day of his life. The sound of a woman giggling and another one screaming signaled another crappy turn in the day as well._

_Without thinking, he looked up._

_Yep. His day had just gone to hell._

_There were two women in the springs, interrupted from their bathing, completely naked. Well, they should be completely naked. They were taking a bath after all. But InuYasha cursed mentally at them anyways. Why couldn't this time have those dumb swimsuits Kagome wore?_

_To his luck, one of the women jumped out of the springs, grabbed her clothes and ran for it. All that was left was the scent of fear, embarrassment, and her own cinnamon-y scent. But, to his dismay, the other one stayed, watching him with a strange look in her brown eyes._

_A growl erupted in his throat uncontrollably. She flinched back, although she need not. It wasn't a growl of "back-off-or-I'll-eat-you-alive." Instead it was a growl of lust. He couldn't help it. He had slipped up. He was screwed. Royally screwed._

_The woman waded herself deeper under the water, eyeing him up and down. Her black hair swirled on the surface, long and clean. He eyed the way it reflected off the sun. _

"_You coming in for a bath or what?" she asked smoothly, watching his every move._

_InuYasha's right eye twitched. His body was screaming at him to just dive in the god damn water and give in to what his demonic side wanted. His human side screamed at him to run as far away as he could from the human female race. But, right now, his demon side was winning. He put his other leg into the water, ignoring the fact that he was fully clothed._

Damn it, _he cursed himself, _What about Kagome? Think Kagome! Not this girl. Not this... this beautiful, gorgeous woman... DAMN IT!

"_So?" she asked softly, wading towards him, "Do you want something?"_

_He tried to glare at her, but he couldn't find the will to. He couldn't do anything. He just stared at her. He managed to place on hand on Tetsusaiga and his mind cleared a bit._

_There was hope!_

_But then she stood up._

_His human side cursed inside his head, the part of him probably tearing the black hair out of his head._

_Suddenly, she was too close._

"_So," she said, tracing his jaw with her finger as she got even closer to him, "Do you want me?"_

_Thankfully, he held back his answer, even though it was loud and clear in his mind. But she decided to take matters into her own hands. Her mouth was on his in a second, her hands undoing the folds of his shirt. He reacted against his will. His hands were holding her lower back, pushing her nude form closer to him. He was lost. He couldn't do anything..._

_The human's voice inside of him died away as they became more intimate, more close to one another. InuYasha's shirt hung around his wait, the tips floating in the water as she continued and he responded. He couldn't stop – she wouldn't stop. He couldn't do anything to stop his hands that wondered up and down her flawless skin, he couldn't control the thoughts that were running through his mind. But he knew he was going too far... too far, too far, too far..._

_And then Kagome was there in his mind, looking at him with sad eyes. He remembered her state of mind when Kikyo was around. He remembered, he remembered how he hurt her. He had promised himself he would never hurt her like that again._

_Tetsusaiga pulsed, snapping its master out of his trance._

_InuYasha broke from her and ran as fast as he could. He couldn't believe himself... he couldn't believe that he had done such a thing. It would haunt him for a while, and he knew it._

_He barely heard the woman yell at him as he ran away from her and away from Kagome. She said something about loving him, about him not being able to get rid of her. She was going to find him._

_He didn't care._

* * *

The sun rose long after Koyasha did. The moon had been long from setting when the pink haired girl had awoken, but she had been polite. She hadn't woken anyone up. Except her father of course – she had gotten him up the moment she had.

"What did you wake me up for, kid?" InuYasha said with annoyance, rubbing sleep out of his golden eyes.

She plopped down next to her father, sitting Indian style.

"Who was that lady?"

InuYasha's eye twitched. Why couldn't she have just forgotten?

"What lady?" he asked, trying to feign obliviousness.

"That lady last night who came to talk to you," she said with a confused look on her face, "The one that you weren't happy to see. Remember? She didn't seem to like me."

"She... She was no one."

Koyasha paused, "Is she like Hojo?"

His eyebrow rose, "Who?"

"He's a guy mommy knows. He like, really liked her. He really, really, _really_ liked her. He still came around even though I was there," she explained, "Mommy said she knew him from school and he had liked her back then and he still did. She said he wasn't going to give up ever. I mean, he came over all the time with presents for her and for _me._ He liked me. But he was always there and mommy doubted that he would ever stop liking her even though she didn't like him and he knew that. She also muttered something about him being like Koga every once in a while, but I don't know who that is," she paused, watching her father's expressions change with her words, "Is that lady like that? Like Hojo?"

He sighed, "Kind of."

"Oh."

There was silence for a moment. InuYasha watched the moon sink behind the mountains.

"So... you probably don't want me to tell mommy, do you?"

He didn't respond. He couldn't answer that question. It would come back to bite him in the ass if he did.

"I'm not gonna tell her." Koyasha announced, leaning against her father's arm.

A bit more silence followed.

Hours later, everyone was up and moving with the sun.

Rikuse, in particular, was watching in a sort of trance as Miroku's and Sango's children played together and the older ones attempted to scheme the eldest. Koyasha was with them, planning as well, and trying to get Rikuse to play along. He had heard of Amaya's wrath from the two year old boy twins though – he wasn't about to do anything against that girl. He was much smarter than most five year olds his age. It was probably the influence Sesshomaru had on him as he had been raised. Instead of plotting against allegedly evil teens, eventually Rikuse went over to his mother timidly. Kagome welcomed him warmly as she and Sango (and Naomi) did laundry in the nearby stream. He ended up helping them since he knew how to do such things. Rin had taught him and he thanked her for it now.

"So Rikuse," Sango began, "How is it living with Sesshomaru?"

Rikuse noted that people found his travels with Sesshomaru-sama extremely strange and interesting, "I like it."

Sango made a sound of understanding, pushing her youngest girl, Naomi, away from the stream's edge. The demon slayer turned her attention to Kagome.

"Have you run into Koga yet? Does he know anything about this?"

Kagome's hands paused in a sort of shock. They began to work again as she answered with a laugh, "I forgot about him, actually. I haven't thought about the wolf tribe in so long..."

"The Eastern wolf tribe leader?" Rikuse asked, looking over at his mother as he pulled a shirt out of the stream.

His mother nodded.

"I've met him," Rikuse announced, "He and Sesshomaru-sama set up a sort of treaty earlier on in the year I think..." the boy paused, "Are you the human miko that he wishes to make his mate?"

Kagome turned scarlet red as Sango began to shake with silent laughter, "Yes."

_No wonder he didn't seem to like me... _Rikuse thought as he continued his chore in silence, a small smile on his face.

* * *

Koyasha laughed, running off into the forest as the rules of the hide and seek game ordered. She had to hide from the person that was supposed to find her, and avoid that person until she reached the "base." They had said she would lose if she used her demonic speed, and she had promised not to use it since they probably would have made her the "seeker" the whole game if she hadn't. But either way, she was determined to win. She, Amaya, Taji, Kyo, and Kyoko were the ones playing. Amaya was "it" because she was the oldest.

The pink haired girl ran into the forest, hiding behind trees and bushes as she listened to Amaya's counting voice, trying to find the best spot possible to hide. But Amaya was so tall... if she hid behind a bush she'd be found. So, finding refuge in a small space in between two boulders, she listened to Amaya's voice reach "20." Then the teen was off to find them.

Koyasha decided to stay there for a while, to let Amaya go search for the others and leave the base wide open. Then she'd run just fast enough to not be demonic and win the round. She was not going to be "it." No, that was utterly unacceptable.

She counted out a minute in her head...

._..fifty-eight..._

_...fifty-nine..._

_One minute!_

So she squirmed out from in between the rocks, shaking her hair out a bit. So she began to run in the direction she had come, just pushing the borders between human speed and demonic speed. And in not paying attention to what was in front of her when she took a glance behind her shoulder, she collided harshly with someone.

"Watch where you're going you little brat!" A female voice spit out as Koyasha landed on her butt.

Koyasha's eyes widened once her vision cleared from the sudden ramming of her rump on the ground. It was that woman...

"It's you." The woman said, glaring daggers at the small girl, "You're the child of his aren't you?"

Koyasha stood up, dusting off her butt then folding her arms across her chest in a very InuYasha-like manner.

"What's it to you?" The young girl demanded, ignoring the now intensified glare her opponent was giving her.

"I should kill you right now," the woman hissed, "I should kill you right now and have it done with then go after your whore of a mother."

Koyasha, whom would have been deeply angered if she had understood what 'whore' meant since it had been directed at her mother, just simply glared right back at the woman.

"You would kill a little girl like me?"

"You're in my way. As long as you are here, he won't come to me."

"He wouldn't come to you anyways. He didn't when I wasn't here – when he didn't even know I was a live."

The woman's lips curled in frustration, "Watch your mouth or your words may be your last."

"What are you gonna kill me with then?" Koyasha asked, aggravating the woman farther, "I'm part demon. You can't kill me with just your hands you know."

The song of metal leaving a sheath came to Koyasha's ears. Now her opponent had a dagger ready in hand. The young girl groaned in realizing how much trouble she had gotten herself into, turned on her heels, and ran for it. But, unfortunately for her, the woman caught her by the scruff of her shirt. The gleam of silver from the sun hitting the blade made Koyasha nervous as she looked over her shoulder. The stupid dagger was right in her face...

"So humans are preying on children now, are they?" asked a gruff voice from the surrounding forest, "Seeking revenge on the innocent now, not the ones who deserve punishment?"

"Who's there?" the woman said, her voice at a screaming level, "Come out now or I'll kill her!"

A sigh sounded out loud enough for them to hear as the man replied, "Y'know, I could care less if InuYasha's kid died—"

"Buttface!" Koyasha yelled in response.

The man laughed, "—But I think Kagome might not forgive me if I let that happen. And plus, what type of man lets a child die?"

Then he emerged from the shadows, a cocky smile on his face. It was none other than Koga, the eastern wolf tribe leader, threatening to the woman's eyes.

"Now drop the dagger, Beautiful, or I'll have to rip your head off," he said with false sweetness as he flashed one of his fangs in a half smile.

An older girl's voice sounded out farther back in the forest as the woman cautiously looked at the wolf demon. She was beginning to be outnumbered...

"My patience doesn't last long, Beautiful..." the wolf demon warned, his brown tail swinging back and forth like a metronome.

A man's voice sounded off in the distance as well, blending in with the girl's earlier voice.

"Alright then, I gave you a chance..."

Then Koyasha was picked up and launched across the clearing unexpectedly once he spoke, flying in a crash course with a tree. The wolf demon jumped up and caught her gracefully, landing softly. But when Koga turned his diverted attention back to the opponent, she was gone. Instead, he was met with the sound of InuYasha's loud yells of the little girl's name.

"Ok then, kid," Koga said, tossing the girl up to sit on his shoulders, "Let's get a move on."

"Hey, wait!" But by the time Koyasha's protests were made they were dashing past the trees at high speeds, the surrounding scenery turning into blurs of colors.

"Don't worry, kid," Koga said, jumping up into the air and over a boulder, turning his body direction in the air so they had made a right turn as he landed on the ground, his speed unaffected, "I'm just gonna take you to Kagome. InuTrasha isn't someone I wanna hear this story from."

"Don't call daddy that!" Koyasha said angrily, hitting the wolf yokai on the head with a frown on her face.

In response all she got from the yokai was a laugh, but her anger at that was distracted when they burst through the trees at alarming speeds, once again jumping up into the air. Koyasha, looking down, could already tell the yokai had jumped too soon. So, with little thought, the young part demon stood up and leapt from his shoulders in the direction they were traveling as he began his decent much too early, landing safely on the other side of the wide river. Koga, on the other hand, landed in the water, violently disrupting the water's surface and current. The splash he created caused the people in the nearby vicinity to yell in surprise, Koyasha again managing to avoid getting wet with a jump the opposite way.

Sango, Rikuse, Kagome, and Naomi hadn't been that lucky though. They were drenched by the splash, as well as their dry and drying laundry. Koyasha could do nothing but fall to the ground and laugh at the sight of her mother, brother, and family friends.

"Koyasha?" Kagome asked, looking her way as she shook off her hands as if that alone would dry her off, "Koyasha, what are you doing here?"

Immediately the laughter stopped. Koyasha lay on the ground, nervous, unsure of what to answer. She couldn't tell her mom about that lady, could she...?

But, much to her relief, Koga just then decided to climb out of the water, shaking himself off as a dog would. His attention was put her way first, before he could even think about saying hello to Kagome.

"You little runt!" the wolf demon said with a cocky grin, taking his hair out of its ponytail, "I can't believe you abandoned me after I saved you."

"Dogs don't like getting wet," Koyasha stated with a wide grin.

"Neither do wolves."

"I don't care. I'm not wet." Koyasha then followed her words by sticking her tongue out at the wolf prince playfully, making him laugh at her childish action.

"At least you're smarter than your father," the wolf commented before he turned his attention to the ones he had drenched with his splash, casually shaking his soaking wet hair out to mist the air around him.

For a moment he and Kagome just stared at each other, neither sure what they should say or do in the situation. They were both cold and soaked to the bone, but it seemed to fade away as they looked at one another. Neither could find themselves to push words over the lump in their throats, each filled with different emotions after their time apart.

To Kagome, he was still a friend.

But to Koga, she was still the mate he would one day have.

"So..." Koga began after the awkward moment that they shared, "...You're finally back."

"Y-Yeah..." Kagome stuttered, unsure of what to say or what to do in his presence.

"And you had a pup with InuTrasha in the mean time, I see," he said cautiously, not caring that Kagome didn't like him calling InuYasha such a name.

"...Two." Kagome corrected after a moment, "I had Koyasha... and Rikuse..."

"Oh." Koga wasn't quite sure what to say, but eventually found his words, "So... You really are taken then..."

Koga's eyes wandered when Kagome didn't respond, his eyes meeting Koyasha's. He couldn't hold anything against the child even if he had wanted to. She was Kagome's child. How in the worlds could he hate the child that the woman he loved had given birth to? It didn't matter who the child's father was. The girl was charming, to say the least. Not arrogant and annoying like her father. Kagome had chosen InuYasha. There was nothing left he could do but accept it. Fighting would just hurt her more. He couldn't do that to her.

He'd just have to live and move on. Maybe, one day, he'd create a family of his own.

"...I'm happy for you," he said awkwardly, one of his hands coming to scratch the back of his neck as he turned her gaze his way, "I'm just happy that you're happy."

One of her famous smiles graced her expression then as she stood up, walking over his way. He wasn't sure what to do when she came to stand in front of him, so he let her do what she wished. There wasn't any thing he could do to make her his any longer. He couldn't steal her away from InuYasha now – he knew that even though InuYasha was a disgrace of his demonic blood he still had the rights any man would have over his woman.

But the last thing he expected her to do was kiss his cheek.

"Koga," her voice was soft as she wrapped her arms around him in a friendly manner, "Thank you so much. Thank you for doing everything you've done for me. I won't forget that. You've always been close to my heart, Koga, even if it wasn't in the way you wanted it to be..."

_If there had been no InuYasha I might have fallen in love with you._

"...And thank you for accepting them, and for accepting my choice. You'll probably never understand how much that means to me."

His face was the darkest red it had probably ever been as he carefully returned her hug in the most innocent fashion he could, inhaling deeply to catch her scent that close to him for the last time.

"As long as you're happy, Kagome, I'll do anything you want me to do."

She looked up at him then, her eyes full of strange emotions when they connected with his.

"Will you move on?"

He smirked slightly, "I don't think I have any other choice now."

And for a while they just stood there, looking at one another. But, as she always did, Koyasha interrupted the silence.

"Daddy's coming."

Kagome immediately released Koga, taking a single step back. His trademark grin spread across his face then, the red dissipating from his cheeks. Turning to watch the hanyo burst from the trees, he leapt up and took flight the moment InuYasha began to yell at him from his airborne position over the river.

Koga was making sure he wasn't the only one falling in that damn river today.

And, with a swift kick and InuYasha's ankles to throw off his balance and speed, the wolf sent the hanyo falling quickly into the water, once again creating a splash soaking everyone but the quick part demon girl. Koga, proud with himself, landed safely of the opposite side of the river, and turned to watch the hanyo pull himself out of the river seconds later. Colorful words inevitably flew out of the hanyo's mouth towards him, but Koga didn't care. He was too happy with himself to care. True, he'd had to let Kagome go, but watching the hanyo fall into the river was good enough. Somewhere inside of him he had known that Kagome would never be his, it had just taken him this long to realize that. His feeling would never truly leave him, but he could deal with that. Her being in his life was good enough.

"Goodbye Kagome!" he called with a cocky grin, turning to leap into the sky as he continued to speak to her over his shoulder, "I'll see you next time!"

And then he was gone, fortunate enough to see the hanyo get face planted into the ground as punishment for his language before he left his love behind.

InuYasha pulled himself out of his crater moments later, turning his glare to Koyasha.

"Where were you, kid!? Me and what's-her-face had to go looking for you!"

"She's got a name." Sango commented, but went ignored by the hanyo.

"I was hiding," Koyasha said with an exaggerated roll of her eyes, "You're kinda _supposed_ to hide in the game, stupid."

"Not for that long!"

"How would you know?"

"Because someone had to_ come and get me_ to find you!"

"I bet you just overacted like Mommy said you do!"

"I think you mean overreacted, dear." Kagome corrected before she turned her attention to her hot headed hanyo, "InuYasha, calm down. Whatever happened was solved. Koga brought her to me."

"Koga did _what_?!"

"He brought her to me," Kagome repeated, pausing momentarily before she turned her gaze to her daughter, "...Why did he have to bring you to me anyways, Koyasha? He wouldn't have brought you along if you weren't in any sort of trouble..." she sighed, assuming Koyasha had probably been doing she wasn't supposed to be doing, "What did you do, Koyasha?"

"Nothing!" the reaction was automatic, provoking Kagome's suspicious further.

"You won't get in trouble if you tell me now."

Koyasha sent a distressed look towards her father before answering her mother, "I swear, Mama, I didn't do anything. He just... He just..."

"She's safe. What does it matter?" InuYasha interjected as he caught the scent of his stalker on his daughter.

"If she's doing something she's not supposed to be doing—"

"She's safe." InuYasha repeated, hiding his distress and curiosity, "It doesn't matter what kind of trouble made Koga bring her here. He probably noticed that she was part demon with dog ears. The wolf might be dumb, but he's not that stupid. He probably brought her along when he came to see you to figure out if she was ours."

Kagome's eyes narrowed, but the brief expression disappeared, "...We'll talk about it later, I guess. Now I think we should all get back. We're all soaked and the laundry is pretty much ruined for the day."

"Yeah," Sango said, throwing pieces of soaked clothing into a basket, "We can do it again tomorrow. Besides, these guys are probably getting hungry."

In response, Naomi gurgled happily, crawling over to her mother's ankle. Apparently the child understood the word "food."

* * *

"...Mommy... Mommy, you're scaring me," Koyasha stated timidly, "...Am I in trouble?"

Kagome's unrelenting gaze continued down on her daughter, all emotion lost to create the perfect defense against her daughter's stubbornness. Ever since Koyasha had been a child she had been very sensitive to other people's emotions, which meant if she could read a person's emotion she felt vulnerable. The ability to pick up on emotions was Koyasha's sixth sense and she felt at a total loss without it. And, when this little fact had been revealed when the girl had been much younger, Kagome had used it as her advantage when she wanted answers her daughter knew but wouldn't giver her.

"No."

"Then stop staring at me like that, Mommy. Please."

"...What happened that made Koga pick you up?"

Koyasha's eyes widened, her actions becoming much more panicked, "Nothing, Mama! I swear! It was probably what Daddy said earlier!"

Kagome didn't let up. She knew both her daughter and her daughter's father were hiding something. She'd always been able to see through both of their lies.

"Don't lie to me, Koyasha."

"But Mommy...! I'm telling the truth!"

"No you aren't. And neither is your father," Kagome insisted, folding her arms across her chest, "You won't get in trouble if you tell me now."

Koyasha was frightened out of her mind. She knew her mother had the unforgiving ability to hold a grudge and the strong sense of jealousy. Of course, she'd never seen either of them in action, but the stories her family had given her were enough.

"Mommy..."

"Koyasha," Kagome's voice was stern against her daughter's whine, the puppy dog eyes she was now receiving having no effect, "Koyasha, you're pushing my patience."

Koyasha was being backed into a corner now, and she knew it. But, luckily for her, once again someone came to interrupt, saving her for the second time that day.

"...Kagome... What's going on?" her father's voice was cautious, as the hanyo had been the receiving end of that look many times. He was fully aware that it meant nothing good.

And, for that moment, Kagome took her eyes off of her daughter, relieving Koyasha. Quickly, the part demon took her chance and dashed to hide behind her father's leg, clutching the red fabric of his pants. Rikuse, whom had followed InuYasha into the room, just stared at his sister. He was slowly learning the strange on goings that happened oh so frequently in his family.

"Nothing, InuYasha," Kagome said, her gaze turning back down toward her daughter, whom was hidden almost completely behind her father's leg, "I'm just trying to figure out what happened today between her and Koga. She won't tell me."

"I thought we already went over this though." InuYasha replied automatically, having been ready for the conversation to come back to bite him in the ass.

"I know you're hiding something too, InuYasha."

The hanyo cringed ever so slightly. She had always been able to see right through him...

"What are you talking about, wench?" InuYasha asked quickly, reverting to use his much ruder term for Kagome he had used so many a time when he had been backed into a corner.

Her glare sent chills down his spine, "Watch your language."

He tried to act unaffected, "Keh."

"So, since she won't tell me," Kagome began after a few seconds of pause, "You tell me. You know something, InuYasha."

Nervously, the hanyo brought one had to scratch behind one of his ears, "I don't know what you're going on about."

Kagome sighed then, sitting down. InuYasha stared in horror as she pulled her knees up to her chest, an all too familiar expression crossing her face.

"_I know you went to see Kikyo."_ The words she had spoken to him in the past floated like ghosts in his mind, that unforgettable face that she had spoken those words with once again reappearing. He had never wanted to see her look like that ever again. He had wanted this part of their life never to haunt them again. He had wanted never to be thought of leaving her for another again.

"...So, that girl who has been following us _is _someone you know," she said sadly, that same tone crossing over her words once again, "...Who is she, InuYasha?"

Immediately InuYasha was on the ground in front of her, his arms wrapped around her in a hug that he never wanted to let go of.

"It's not like that. It's not like Kikyo," he said, his tone something she had never once heard him use in her time with him, "Please, Kagome, you have to believe me. I'm not like that anymore. I wouldn't do that to you. I _can't _do that to you. I love you... I love_ you._"

Neither of them spoke for a moment, but Kagome's arms did find their way to wrap around him.

"Please, Kagome," he said carefully, not wanting to say anything he would regret, "She's some girl that thinks she loves me. I've been trying to lose her for years. Sometimes I do lose her completely. But she's always found her way back to where I am... I want to kill her, but she's just a spoiled mortal. I can't raise a hand against her unless she comes after me first... you know that. I know you know that... You have to believe me Kagome... I will never do what Kikyo made me do to you ever again. I can't watch you go through that again..."

She didn't speak, just buried her face in the crook of his neck. For a long time they didn't do anything but sit there in each other's embrace, both too afraid to break the silence.

_I believe you._ Kagome could do nothing but believe him. That's just what her love had always made her do. She had forgiven and forgotten, and she knew she'd be doing that her whole life with him. She trusted him. She had to trust him... and just believe that he had grown over all these years.

"Y'know," came a small voice from beside Kagome's ear, "He's telling the truth, Lady Kagome."

Almost automatically following the voice a loud slap echoed through the room they were in, a small growl coming from InuYasha.

"Myoga," he said angrily, "You had better have a _good reason_ for showing up this time."

* * *

**A/N: I'm pretty sure this is my longest chapter yet... came up as 16 pages on Microsoft Word...**

**But, anyways, I'm having a lot of fun writing this story right now, which means updates should come quicker! Yay! Remember, I'm _always_ open to your ideas of what I should do with this story.**

**So, enjoy. Remember to Review! **


	10. Dissapearance

Myoga, scared senseless by the hanyo's tone, shivered slightly.

"Why, Master InuYasha, must I have a reason to see you?"

"Are you telling me you don't have a reason?" the hanyo growled menacingly, squeezing the flea with a deadly look in his golden eyes.

"No! I mean, yes!" the flea managed to squeak out, "I came here to warn you of impending danger!"

InuYasha automatically released his tight hold on the flea, his eyes filled with a worried curiosity.

"What danger?" Koyasha asked as she jumped on her father's back so she could have a look at the demon

Myoga didn't seem to notice her, "Master InuYasha, I must warn you of that boy."

InuYasha's brow furrowed, mild anger seeping into his eyes, "You trying to say there's something wrong with my kid?!"

"No, Master InuYasha! I just mean to say that you need to be careful." The flea said quickly, "His aura is strange, Master InuYasha, and I would be wary around him. His aura is... powerful. Very powerful. And there's something not right about that much power in a little boy...""

Rikuse's eyes widened. He was... _dangerous_?

InuYasha's anger was obvious as he opened his palm up to allow the flea demon to stand, "There's nothing wrong with my boy, you senile old flea!" Then, abruptly, he flicked the flea away.

But to Rikuse the flea's words seemed to make too much sense.

"...Father..." the boy started, "Father, I think he's right."

InuYasha, slightly surprised at the boy addressing him as father, turned to face the boy as Koyasha slid off his back.

"There's nothing wrong with you, kid," he assured, "Myoga is a senile old bastard. He wouldn't come near if you were actually as powerful as he said. He's too much of a coward to risk it."

"Yeah!" Koyasha said, tackling her brother to the ground, "There's nothing wrong with you! Actually, you're probably the normal one in the family!"

Kagome, laughing slightly at the truth in her daughter's words, stood up and removed Koyasha from her spot on top of her brother, kneeling beside her son as he sat up.

"I promise you, Rikuse, there's nothing wrong with you." She said kindly, cupping his cheek in her hand, "You're fine."

Rikuse's eyes strayed from his mother, "But... but Sesshomaru-sama has a scar on his arm..."

"What does that have to do with you, darling?"

"He told me I caused it when I was young on the night of the half moon. But he won't tell me how it happened or what I did..."

InuYasha's ears perked, "You hurt Sesshomaru? No kidding?"

"That is what I was told." Rikuse said, a bit ashamed.

InuYasha responded with a laugh, "Whether you did or not, good job!"

Kagome, not in full belief of her son's story, gathered him up into her arms as she stood.

"C'mon you two," she said to Koyasha and Rikuse, "We should go sit with the others and play outside before I send you off bed."

--

After a spirited game of tag that Koyasha shared with Sango's and Miroku's children and the calm fireside talk Rikuse participated in with the adults, Kagome had sent them off to bed as the moon climbed up into the higher points in the side. And soon after that the adults had retired to their beds as well, the night calm and peaceful. InuYasha had cuddled close to Kagome, who held her daughter and son to her chest. But over time Rikuse had wriggled his way out of his mother's embrace, lying not far from his sleeping family. His rest was undisturbed for the night, wisps of clouds hiding the moon's rays to cast the world in dark.

The stillness of the night's air was broken as a melody floated on the air, rousing Rikuse from his sleep. Beside him his father only seemed slightly annoyed by the sound, but the older hanyo did not wake. Koyasha was completely unaffected by the sound, but it started to grate on the young boy's mind. And as the breeze blew lightly against the boy's face, Rikuse stood without much thought. The melody wove into his thoughts, entrancing him entirely. And soon Rikuse was following the sound, walking out of the house and it's meadow to weave through the forest's trees to find whatever was making the music. Yet he was doing so with little thought. All he knew was that he had to follow... he just had to follow the sound. It called to him. I pulled at him in ways he couldn't imagine.

"Oh."

He stopped walking then, his blank eyes turning towards the voice as the melody dropped from the air. There was a black haired woman in front of him, a flute held in a ready position just below her mouth. Her brown eyes were staring down at him, inspecting him as much as she could in the dark of the night.

"Are you InuYasha's child?"

Rikuse nodded, "I guess so."

"Well..." She seemed thoughtful and a bit disappointed, "...I guess you'll do."

A raven that Rikuse hadn't noticed hopped up on the woman's lap, opening its beak as if it were expecting her to give it something. Gracefully, the woman reached out to Rikuse, grabbing his wrist to pull him closer to her. She set down her flute, her other hand still held fast on the boy as she took hold of a lock of his hair. And in one swift pull she tore out a good number of strands from his scalp, releasing him immediately after. Using her free hand she reached into the folds of her kimono, withdrawing with a folded white cloth in her hand. Unfolding it, she laid it flat in her palm, carefully dropping the boy's hairs onto the white surface. Once again she folded it, this time placing the folded parcel in the raven's mouth, the animal immediately taking flight with his package in his possession.

Then she turned and stood, walking away, once again playing her flute in unresisting tunes. Rikuse wasn't sure what to do as he watched her leave, but she soon paused, turning to look at him over her shoulder.

"C'mon," she said smoothly, "Follow."

* * *

Koyasha yawned, stretching. Unfortunately, her fist collided with her father's nose when she stretched it out, waking the hanyo from his sleep quite rudely as he grabbed at his nose.

"What the hell, kid?!" he muttered angrily, glaring at his daughter.

Koyasha just laughed in response as her arms fell into her lap, her bright smile dissipating InuYasha's anger. A bit annoyed that the child could so quickly tame his anger, the hanyo stood, muttering under his breath. His eyes turned to the bright morning sun, a part of him thankful that his daughter hadn't woken him up sooner.

"Uhh... Daddy?"

"Yeah? What do you want?" InuYasha replied, his gaze focusing back down on his daughter.

"Where... Where's Rikuse?"

InuYasha looked around warily then, his eyes searching for his son.

_Crap..._ InuYasha thought, his senses flaring to alert when he couldn't find his son in the vicinity_ ...Where the hell is he?..._

"He probably just went to go take a shit or something, kid." InuYasha lied, his eyes still searching the area and his nose trying to track down the scent, "Don't worry about it."

"InuYasha..." Kagome mumbled, causing InuYasha to look her way, "...Sit boy."

Plummeting face first into the ground as he caught a glimpse of Kagome sitting up, the hanyo cursed the woman, unintentionally eating a mouthful of dirt.

"Please, dear," Kagome said to the grounded hanyo, "Don't curse so early in the morning."

"Mama!" Koyasha said, jumping into her mother's lap, "Mommy, we can't find Rikuse!"

Kagome looked down at her daughter with a confused stare, "What do you mean you can't find him?"

"He's not here!"

Kagome's eyes immediately shot back to InuYasha, whom was now lying on his back, his eyes closed.

"Don't worry about it, Kagome," InuYasha said, taking a deep breath, "He probably just went to go take a bath or something."

Kagome, slightly angered with InuYasha's lack of care in the situation, turned to her daughter.

"Koyasha, dear, can you smell him?"

Koyasha turned her nose to the air, "Uhh..." Her eyes widened then, her nose sniffing the air in a somewhat frantic motion, "…No!"

Kagome didn't react automatically, but InuYasha was sitting up automatically, sniffing at the air as well. He tried to follow the faint trail his daughter's nose was to weak to pick up, but the moment he got about fifteen feet into the surrounding forest, he stopped dead in his tracks.

_No…_

He dropped down to the ground, almost shoving his nose into the dirt. But he couldn't evade the facts. She had been there and she had taken him.

"…No…" his voice was a whisper as he slowly got to his feet, his eyes filled with a strange, distant look.

_Fuck… No…_

"InuYasha!" his name was called in shrill tones, making him follow them out of instinct rather than his own choice.

Seconds later he was back inside his friend's house, kneeling beside Kagome. She was staring in shock down at a sword impaled raven, a white cloth clutched in her hand so tight her knuckles were turning colors.

"Kagome…"

"Did you find him?" she asked with shaking tones, her body beginning to shake.

"…No." he said with a sigh, realizing this was probably the worst thing he'd ever have to say in his life.

_I lost my son…_

"Kagome," Amaya said, releasing her hold on the hilt of the sword she'd stabbed the bird with to take hold of Kagome's hand, prying her fingers off of the cloth, "Kagome, there's something inside of that. Maybe it will tell us where Rikuse is."

When the teen had hold of the cloth she unfolded it quickly, taking a place to kneel in front of both hanyo and miko. She cocked her head to the side slightly, staring down at the few strands of hair lying in the folds.

"It's… hair…?" she muttered under her breath, taking one of the strands in her hair.

"Hand it over." InuYasha commanded, slightly annoyed at her tendency to state the obvious.

Taking the hairs in his hand, he held them up to his nose, sniffing cautiously.

_Fuck._

"It's Rikuse's hair."

Kagome started sobbing then, throwing herself into InuYasha's arms. Koyasha just stood idly by, her hand clinging to Amaya's shoulder.

Suddenly Amaya was up, pulling her sword out of the bird and jumping to the side with Koyasha in her arms, a blur of white passing by at air slicing speeds where the two had just been. In an instant InuYasha was torn from Kagome, slammed against the wall with wood splintering impact.

"You ingrate," Sesshomaru breathed in an unsettlingly calm manner, controlled and passive anger flashing through his golden eyes, "You worthless, filthy, vermin!" In a blink of an eye InuYasha was on the ground, Sesshomaru's foot crushing into his chest, "Are you incapable of protecting a five year old, InuYasha? Have you failed to protect your own family? Be the hanyo you are, baby brother, and _crawl on the ground!_" Sesshomaru kicked InuYasha like a dog then, sending him flying out of the house and colliding into the trees of the surrounding forest, the unfortunate tree that InuYasha flew into shattering with impact. In seconds Sesshomaru was over him again, his foot threatening to crush InuYasha's throat. Seconds later the yokai had flipped the hanyo onto his stomach, his foot crushing the back of the boy's skull into the ground, "A hanyo should act like a hanyo…" his voice was still calm with passive anger, his actions fully controlled with inhuman skill, "And _lick the ground_!"

"Sesshomaru!" Kagome's voice was ignored as she called out to the yokai.

The song of a sword sang in smooth tones as Sesshomaru drew Tokijin from its place at his waist, the point of the sword wedged in the ground close to InuYasha's head.

"Should I kill you baby brother?" Sesshomaru asked menacingly, his foot pressing down a bit harder on the hanyo's skull, "Should I take your life so you can no longer shame our family name? Or should this Sesshomaru let you live and save your son so you may gain back some of what little honor you had before." Sesshomaru kicked the hanyo back onto his back, his foot pressing down on the hanyo's ribcage as he leaned in closer to the hanyo's face, "Remember, little brother, your fate has always lay in my hand. I have every right to take away your pathetic life right now."

"Sesshomaru, stop!" Kagome collided with the demon then, one arm wrapped around his armored chest and the other underneath his arm and across his shoulder, "Please, Sesshomaru, stop. We have to find my son. I can't lose him again!"

For a moment nothing happened as Sesshomaru mulled over her invasion of his person and her words. InuYasha's breathing was ragged and his eyes were filled with anticipation as his brother's eyes bore down on him, unsure if he was at death's door or not.

"Remove yourself from my person," Sesshomaru ordered, not bothering to look over his shoulder at her.

Immediately Kagome stepped back from him, Koyasha coming up to stand beside her as she entered the scene. Sesshomaru gracefully removed his sword from the ground and returned his blade back to his side, stepping away from InuYasha.

"We will search for the boy," Sesshomaru said, "But he will no longer reside in your care once we find him, InuYasha. Your woman will not be rejected to visit him or care for him, but you will no longer have a place in his life. You have proved that you cannot protect your own child, nor the people of your family."

"You can't do that!" InuYasha said with a slightly cracked voice as he sat up, his eyes filled with a firing anger.

"This Sesshomaru may do as he wishes, InuYasha," the yokai responded, returning InuYasha's glare with a much colder and stronger glare, "I am leader and ruler of this family. Ultimately, I may decide to do whatever I wish with your children, no matter that you are their father. Learn your place in the world and in your family, worthless half-breed."

"There's no fucking way I'll let you take my son from me, you bastard!" InuYasha yelled, his voice fully returned as he jumped to his feet, drawing his father's fang.

Sesshomaru did nothing but turn to look at his brother, his gaze even fiercer that it had ever been, chilling InuYasha to the bone.

"Do you challenge my place, InuYasha?" His voice was unnervingly cool and calm, every emotion he had once shown now devoid from his face to be replaced by a seriousness InuYasha had never seen, "Do you wish to challenge me for the spot I hold in our family? Is your goal to take over a family that hates you and does not pursue you under _my_ command?"

InuYasha froze. Sesshomaru was serious about this, more serious than he had ever been before.

"…No."

"A smart move on your part, hanyo." Sesshomaru noted, turning his gaze away from InuYasha to speak to Kagome, "Gather up what you wish to bring, woman. We leave at sundown."

Then Sesshomaru was gone, leaving behind only a gentle gust of wind.

--

"We're going with you, Kagome," Miroku announced as he helped Kagome cram stuff into a small feudal style bag.

"No, Miroku," InuYasha responded from his spot where Koyasha slept in his arms, "You've got everyone here to deal with."

"Amaya can care for them, she's already agreed to."

"You aren't coming, Miroku." InuYasha repeated, "I'm not going to put either you or Sango in danger. It isn't fair to either of you or your children. What happened if one of you died?"

Miroku fell silent, but before he could open his mouth to speak again, Amaya was at his side.

"I'll go with instead," she said, facing her adopted father, "InuYasha is right. You guys can't leave everybody behind and I doubt I'll be able to keep everything in control here alone."

"But—"

"Father, I know how to fight." She interrupted, "I survived for on my own since I was five. I'll be fine."

"Amaya—"

"Father, you can't stop me and you can't go with them. Understand that. It's time for me to go, but I'll be back."

"You can't guarantee that."

"Yeah she can. If she gets into any type of fix she's got me and Kagome." InuYasha interjected, "And she stood up to my brother. If she can do that without pissing herself she can do anything else."

Miroku tried to think of something to counter him, but after a moment he just sighed and bowed his head.

"Alright. I guess you guys are right." After a pause, he continued, "To tell you the truth, Sango and I… we just miss the adventure. There aren't any more demons around these parts that could attack the house since InuYasha killed all of them. There's nothing to fight and nothing to protect the children from. It's just… we want to fight again…"

Kagome laughed slightly, "Don't worry. Somewhere along the line you'll be able to again. Your children will grow up and demons will come and inhabit these parts. And if they don't do it soon, I'll be surprised. Remember, I've still got the jewel inside me. They'll come around to get it eventually."

InuYasha's ears perked up, "You still have the jewel inside of you?"

"Of course. I just haven't had to worry about it since I was in my time."

"…No, I don't think it's there anymore." Amaya said, her head tilted slightly to the side as she looked at Kagome, "I don't… I don't think it's in _you._"

"What do you mean? It never left me."

Amaya's eyes lit up with realization, "Your hair is black and InuYasha's hair is white, right?"

Kagome looked confused, "Yeah…?"

"Koyasha's hair is pink." Amaya stated, "And the flea said something about a strange power in Rikuse."

Kagome's eyes widened, her eyes frantically turning towards her daughter and InuYasha.

"She's right…" InuYasha muttered, "And I don't sense the Shikon Jewel on you like I did before. It's more… faint. Almost like only the power is left."

"The power transferred to your kids, I bet," Amaya said thoughtfully, "I think you only have the shell of the jewel left in you Kagome!"

The sakura petals fell all around Rikuse as the music of the flute floated through his senses, the black haired woman holding him in her lap. The garden they sat in was majestic, the sakura trees and trickling pond a beautiful sight to see inside this large mansion. He hadn't been here for long, but time wasn't really an essence any more. For some reason, things just didn't matter to him any more. He just knew he had to breath and be here beside this woman.

The music faded into nothingness as it dropped out of the air.

"What's your name, dear?" the woman asked, her arms wrapping around him.

"…Rikuse." His voice was empty, emotionless.

"You may address me as Misako, Rikuse," she said, a small smile on her face, "I'm going to be you new mother… or something like it."

"I already have a mother, Misako-sama."

"Yes you do, and it's such a shame really. She won't let you experience your full potential, and doing such a thing should be a crime. You have a bright future, Rikuse. Your future is filled with wealth and power, something many people crave but cannot obtain."

"I don't really care for power and wealth, Misako-sama."

She seemed a little confused by his statement, "Then what you do crave, Rikuse?"

"Knowledge."

"So you wish to be wise?" she asked with another small smirk, her arms tightening around him a bit more, "Well, I can make that happen."

"How can you do that, Misako-sama?" he asked, the fog filling his mind becoming a bit clearer, "Sesshomaru-sama told me that knowledge could only be obtained over time and experience. He said that knowledge and power are hand in hand – one cannot be obtained without the other."

"Your Sesshomaru-sama is very wise," she commented, one of her hands twitching ever so slightly, "But he is not wise enough. Knowledge can also be obtained just by knowing someone who is knowledgeable. Knowledge can be obtained by being taught and reaching your full potential, can it not?"

"I would guess so, Misako-sama." His vision began to clear as he talked, the feeling of being in a dream lifting from his mind.

"I am going to allow you to reach your full potential Rikuse." She said, "All you have to do is trust me."

He looked up at her then, his eyes full of confusion.

"Misako-sama, where am I? Who are you?"

She just smiled down at him, her hands suddenly clutching painfully at his chest.

"You're home, and I'm your new mother."

At his surprised and pained expression she found joy, magic flowing through her veins and into his body, the coils and strings of her spell latching onto him and flowing through his blood.

In his last moment of being himself, he managed to ask one question.

"Why are you doing this?"

"So I can gain what I crave, Rikuse, just like you're doing this to gain that knowledge you want so badly."

His scream ran through her ears, her mind unaffected by the child's cries. Sadness was her joy. Suffering was her peace. Damnation was her salvation.

A gust of wind blew up as Rikuse's cries died down, the petals of the sakura petals falling gently around them. The moon, shining bright upon them, cast shadows around them, illuminating the features that were hit by its light.

And only the moon could see the true evil in Misako's eyes.

* * *

**A/N: Yeah. It suddenly got complicated, didn't it? Wanna know why?  
**

**Ok. So, remember Maistwin? Yeah, she decided to get involved in the story once again. So, if you have any complaints about the sudden complications in the story, complain to her. She's insane. She also threatened me that if I don't write what she wants me to write she'll murder me. I have no choice. XD But whatever, it's our (well, my) story. So, enjoy the sudden complications.**

**Oh, so just so you know, this story has been doubled in length. Instead of the one part story I was going to do, it is turning into a two part story. So, the original 13-15 chapter length will turn into at least 18-22. Probably more. The chapter number will around 30, it just depends since Part 2 hasn't been ploted out entirely. **

**Enjoy, read, review, and deal with it! (smiles) I love y'all!**

**Hey, and while you are at it, tell me what you think about Maistwin's choice to make this story longer through threats and rants over the phone. **


	11. Monster

"Why are we even here?" InuYasha asked with something similar to a whine, one hand scratching behind his ear, "She wouldn't have brought him to some place like this."

"Oh, stop your whining dog boy," Amaya said as she turned around, walking backwards with one hand resting on her sword's hilt, "If you wanna find Rikuse, we've gotta search everywhere. And even if he isn't here, you know how these villagers gossip. Someone will know something."

"Stop walking backwards – you look like an idiot. And if you call me 'dog boy' one more time, I will throw you through a tree." InuYasha said with a glare, his arm snaking around Kagome's lower back.

Amaya just responded with a roll of her eyes as she turned back around, the trio stepping over the border into the village. The looks the villagers gave them on their arrival went unnoticed, or ignored, by Amaya, but InuYasha noticed them automatically. Maybe it was just because he had grown up noticing and receiving these looks, but usually there was no… threat behind the outsiders' looks. But this time, there was. He held Kagome a bit closer as a result, his golden eyes scanning over the crowd. And it was all too obvious what the problem was with a single glance at these people. They were _demon slayers._

"Amaya, what's the big deal?!" InuYasha snarled, the young girl turning around with a smirk on her face as he spoke.

"What?" she asked, a fake look of innocence painted on her face, "Is Inu-baby afraid of the demon slayers?"

"Shut up!" InuYasha barked back, full of annoyance at the teenager.

"Aww…" Amaya said, turning her eyes back to the road in front of her, "Poor Inu-baby is afraid of the demon slayers that are gonna hurt him!"

"You call me 'Inu-baby' one more time and I will _fucking _kill you!"

"Poor Inu-baby is mad!"

"That's it you little—what the…!?" InuYasha stopped his anger as a pain shot through his hand, his gaze turning downwards automatically.

There, hanging on his hand, was a small boy, his sharp teeth dug into the hanyo's skin. The boy was making a noise similar to a growl as InuYasha tried to shake him off, but the child had a tight grip on the hanyo.

"Leggo' of me you stupid little kid!"

Amaya, who was laughing her ass off, couldn't do much but roll on the ground as InuYasha argued with the biting child. But Kagome quickly moved out of InuYasha's grip, slowly coaxing the child off of InuYasha's hand.

"I was saving you, lady!" the child yelled, "Why are you stopping me?! He's a demon!"

"I don't need saving, dear. There isn't anything wrong with me walking with a demon."

The child looked at her strangely for a moment, but his emotions soon turned to rage.

"He's put a spell on you, hasn't he, lady?!" the child asked in enraged tones, "There is no other reason you would be with a demon!"

"Dear, he didn't put any spell on me. I doubt he could if he wanted to–"

"What are you implying?" InuYasha interrupted, a scowl on his face.

"Ignore him," Kagome said as she watched the child turn his glare towards InuYasha, "He's just moody. But I don't need saving. He's my friend. Much more than my friend. And there is nothing wrong like that."

The child growled at her then, his eyes filled with a hatred Kagome had never received from a child before. It almost hurt her, but she knew the child couldn't help it. To him, demons were evil. That was all he knew. There wasn't anything else to it.

"Sen! Sen, where are you!?" came the call of a distressed female, one that Kagome turned to automatically, "Sen – Sen!!"

Kagome sighed when she saw the woman's cry turned to something much more shill and fearful, the woman grabbing a nearby sword.

"There," Kagome said quietly, setting the boy down, "Go run off to the woman calling you."

The boy ran off after one last glare, "accidentally" stomping on InuYasha's foot as he run by. Of course, InuYasha wasn't affected, but his annoyance was obvious.

"We should get out of here," InuYasha commented as he watched a young girl stare at him with the deepest glare he had ever seen, "And soon."

* * *

Sesshomaru walked without much thought through the forest, Rin and Jaken following just behind him. They had separated from InuYasha's group on his suggestion as they could cover more ground, and Sesshomaru was finding himself very grateful for the separation from his arrogant brother. There had been a constant tension between him and the hanyo that had grated on his nerves – even though he too was at fault, but, of course, he would never admit such – and the break was much needed. But closing one door always opened another. Now he had to listen to his wards argue amongst themselves, which was proving to be just as annoying as his younger brother's presence.

"Rin."

The young teen automatically stopped bickering with the toad-like demon, her full attention on her lord.

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"You and Jaken are to go out on your own and search."

Rin, a bit surprised at this, could do nothing but attempt to ask a question.

"But, Sesshomaru-sama—"

"You are fully capable of going on your own." Sesshomaru interrupted, "Now go."

Rin didn't argue the point any further, and soon she and the toad demon were gone, heading off to look on their own. In result, Sesshomaru was left on his own, much to his joy. Well, whatever type of joy Sesshomaru can feel. And for hours the inu yokai walked alone, crossing over meadows, streams, and through forests without interruptions.

…_Why do I search for you, Rikuse?_ Sesshomaru asked himself as he walked alongside a river's edge, the sparkling water flowing quickly and strongly without disruption,_ Has this Sesshomaru truly become soft? What happens to him is of no consequence to me, so why do I still have the need… no, why do I want to search for you? Your family tie means nothing to me, for you are the son of that ignorant hanyo. But yet… this Sesshomaru cares._

"Mother?!" the whispered cry of the young boy interrupted Sesshomaru's thoughts, "Mother, where are you?!"

Sesshomaru's attention focused on the young child then, his golden gaze setting upon the young boy kneeling at the river's edge in front of him. The inu yokai stopped walking then, his eyes wandering over the young boy's form. The boy couldn't be more than six or seven, but despite the human appearance, the dog ears set atop his head were a dead give away. This child was _hanyo. _But was even worse, he was _inu hanyo. _But Sesshomaru didn't let his mind wander, he simply watched the child cry near the water's edge, distressed at the separation of him from his mother.

"Tears are disgraceful." Sesshomaru stated after a moment of watching the boy cry, a small flicker of disgust passing through his eyes.

The young boy's eyes shot up to face him, the boy obviously scared to death at the sight of Sesshomaru.

"I…I lost my mother." The boy chocked out, his eyes red and puffy from his crying, "Can you… can you help me?"

Sesshomaru was almost amused at the question he was asked, but yet somewhere in his mind he felt a bit of pity for the child.

"No." his voice still held the same bitterness it had always had, "Your life is not my responsibility."

"But… I don't… I don't know where she is…"

"That isn't my problem or my responsibility."

The boy opened his mouth once more to speak, but the presence of another interrupted him. The young one was soon scooped up into a woman's arms, her long black hair cascading over him and shielding him from view.

"Don't you ever do that to me again," she whispered to the boy, unknowing of Sesshomaru's presence, "Don't you ever do that…"

Sesshomaru, slightly irked by the interruption to his day, walked up to the two, not pausing to stop. He walked past them without a second thought, his silver hair managing to brush over an uncovered area of her wrist. And as he walked passed the two, the woman looked up, her eyes widening into saucers.

"…Thank you… Lord S-Sesshomaru." she said quietly, stammering a little in her nervousness.

Sesshomaru almost paused at the sound of his name, but he just continued on walking. The fact that the woman was aware of who he was only meant that the inu yokai father was smart enough to tell the woman who he was. And soon they were far behind him and out of mind. But, before he ignored the memory and erased it forever, he let his mind wander ever so slightly. And even as he entered the shade of the trees, the hanyo boy left a small impression on his mind.

_...I wonder if Rin is of age yet…_

Sesshomaru twitched in horror at his own thoughts, but quickly erased the thought from his mind and memory, determined never to think of such a thing again.

* * *

InuYasha, with Kagome perched on his back and Amaya laughing her ass off as she chased after him, jumped off the village's border walls, avoiding all the weaponry thrown their way.

"_I told you we didn't need to go through there!_" InuYasha screamed at the teen following them, annoyed at the laughter coming his way.

"Awww, is Inu-baby scared?!" Amaya yelled back in response, her running slightly slowed by her laughter.

With angry demon slayers chasing after the trio InuYasha didn't answer, but rather he just picked up the speed, quite fine with the idea of leaving her behind for the demon slayers to eat. Well, they wouldn't eat her, but she was a demon's friend. They'd kill her in the most humane form they could. If killing could even be considered humane on any level, that is.

But Amaya just laughed as the village and the angry villagers disappeared behind them, allowing the trio to stop running as they calmed down into a walking group once more.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?!" InuYasha yelled as Kagome dismounted from his back.

"So what if I did?"

InuYasha was angered by Amaya, stomping up to her and getting down in her face, "You have the sickest and the most twisted sense of humor I have ever seen."

She just laughed again, "Only for you, dog-boy."

"I am going to _fucking—!"_

But InuYasha never got to finish his sentence once he was plowed into the ground, Kagome standing behind him with an annoyed look on her face. With his necklace glowing bright with the subduing spell, InuYasha grumbled something incoherent through his mouthful of dirt. Amaya, once again a helpless girl rolling on the ground in fits of laughter, couldn't do much but stare at the grounded hanyo.

"InuYasha, please," Kagome said, a bit distressed, "Stop yelling at her. All I want to do is find Rikuse. I don't want to lose my son again."

InuYasha then managed to yank his head out of the ground, looking up at Kagome.

"This is hard on me too," he managed to say as he pulled himself out of his crater, "Kagome, I want to find him more than anything. I would send Miroku and Sango out to help us find him if I could, but they've got Koyasha and the others to take care of. I'd recruit as many people as I could, but there are only so many people I know, Kagome."

"What about Shippo?" she asked, her arms crossing over her chest with a slight sigh.

"Shippo's off doing his 'kitsune youjutsu' exams. He's staying with some other kitsune family."

"Kitsune Youjutsu exams?" she asked quietly, unsure of what InuYasha was talking about.

"Some fox demon exam thing for their magic and spells and shit. You can't exactly step out of it though."

He walked up to her then, finally managing to carry himself out of his crater, and embraced her in his arms.

"Kagome," he said quietly, ignoring the now calming down Amaya, "We'll find him. I promise you that."

* * *

Rikuse caught the apple gracefully in his hand, giving a confused look at Misako, whom sat on the other side of the sun bathed garden.

"You're supposed to eat it, dear." Misako said with a smirk as she inspected the stream she sat next.

Rikuse took a bite then, turning his eyes back up to the sky. The sun was half covered by a cloud, flashing the image of a half moon across his mind's eye. With a slight raise of his right eyebrow the part demon just took another bite, falling on the ground to lay on his back.

"So, Rikuse," Misako began, with drawing her hand from the streams water, "Tell me something about your family."

"What do you want to know?" he asked, turning his head to face her.

"Tell me about… your father. I want to know more about him."

"…I really don't know much about him, Misako-sama. I only met him a few days ago. He seems very brash and slightly cruel. Sesshomaru-sama says he is also very arrogant and ignorant."

"Tell me more about your 'Sesshomaru-sama'."

"Sesshomaru-sama is the Lord of the Western Lands. He is the most powerful enemy and the strongest ally you could ever have. He is… very strong headed in a sense. And if something threatens him or the ones under his protection, you are sure to die by his hand. He is not a man I would ever cross."

"Hmm…" the woman said in her half minded state as she mulled over what Rikuse had said, her hand dipping into the stream once more, "Your Sesshomaru-sama sounds very dangerous."

"He can be."

"…You are very useful, Rikuse. Under my control you could tell me everything I need to know. Maybe you are a better catch than your pink-haired sister."

"She may not be the smartest, but she is my sister none the less. I would be very happy if you were not to insult her."

"Oh," Misako said with a surprised tone, her surprise quickly turning to amusement, "Even under this little spell you have undying loyalty to your family, though you've only known them a few days... I'll humor you," she said. "I won't humiliate them again."

There their conversation ended, and Rikuse was left to his thoughts.

"…I wonder," he muttered to himself, "If that time is coming around again…"

"What was that?" Misako asked, having heard him muttering to himself.

"I was just talking to myself."

"What were you saying?"

"…I was just wondering if that time was coming around again."

"What time, Rikuse?"

"…I change… I change into a monster a couple times a month…"

Misako, unsure of what to think of this, simply stared at the boy.

"What type of monster?" she asked softly, curiosity invading all corners of her mind.

"…A… A monster…"

And then the conversation was left at that.

* * *

**A/N: Yes, short chapter. It was only written for filler purposes, actually, and to write about them all searching for Rikuse. I think the actual main reason was to write that one part with Sesshomaru, but whatever.**

**Anyways, I have yet another question for all of you. I've been approached with the idea of setting up a site for this fanfiction by someone who I am not at liberty to give you any information on. What do you all think? It'll probably happen, but all it will have on it is a link to the story, a couple pics of the characters (both OC and canon), possibly a couple background stories and profiles, and maybe more. I just want to know if you guys would think it would be worth it or just a waste of my time. Because, of course, I _never _waste my time! (that's pure sarcasm, folks)**

**Anyways, thanks for reading, reviewing, and putting up with me! Enjoy!**


	12. Half Moon

"_Give your soul to me,  
For eternity  
Release your life  
To begin another time with her  
End your grief with me  
There's another way  
Release your life  
Take your place inside the fire with her"_

Disturbed –Inside the Fire

* * *

Koyasha tapped her foot impatiently, holding Naomi in her arms. Sango was off tending to both sets of twins, while Miroku tended to the other ones. And with being the youngest and being left behind while her parents – which whom she was absolutely infuriated with – went off on their big adventure, she was stuck with tending to the youngest sleeping child. And, while her anger boiled beneath the surface, she was itching with the need to run off. If you knew Koyasha well enough, you knew she was going to do just that. She was going to run and run until her legs gave out. She was determined not to be left behind and stuck with baby duties. She was going to go and find her brother, and she was determined to do so. And, because of genes she had been so gracefully given by her father, once she was determined to do something, she would do it with out fail.

"Koyasha, dear!" Sango called, "Koyasha, is Naomi alright?"

Koyasha sighed, plopping down on the ground in a crossed-legs sitting position, "Yeah, Sango. She's still asleep. She's _always_ asleep."

She didn't get a response, so she stood back up, walking into the older couple's room, to which the baby also rested. As quietly as she could, Koyasha laid the small child in its crib, hoping to all the gods that may exist that the baby should remain asleep. And, luckily, the child was undisturbed in her rest. So the young girl carefully crept up to the window on the farthest edge of the room, pulling herself up onto the windowsill like she had done so many times in her mother's room.

"Kay, Mommy." Koyasha said with a smirk, "Here I come!"

And, unaware of the monk who had just walked into the room, she jumped out of the house and ran off, turning into a white streak of color that glowed pink underneath the sun.

Miroku could do nothing but run up to the windowsill and watch her go, shaking with a silent laughter.

--

Koyasha hadn't been prepared in the slightest when she had run off, but she had no problem with surviving on her own. But even though she hadn't been out of Sango's and Miroku's home for more than a couple hours, she seemed to be doing fine on her own.

But, of course, she was drowning in a sea of boredom.

_I shoulda' asked Sango where Mommy and Daddy ran off to. It would been easier that way. _

All she could do was sigh every couple minutes, unable to do much else.

So, with a loss of ideas of what she could do to pass the time, she ran. She ran and she ran until she couldn't feel much else but the burning in her legs. So, eventually, when she was out of breath and had experienced quiet enough pain, she slowed to a walk, stopping after a while to fish in a small river to catch lunch. And as she dangled her toes in the river, a very small fire at her side and cooked fish on a stick in her hand, her ears caught the sound of an argument nearby. And, in being the curious girl she was, she quickly slipped on her shoes and finished her lunch, following the sound in a sort of jog.

"Rin, you stupid girl, we need to find Sesshomaru-sama!"

"Jaken-sama, it doesn't matter! Rikuse-san is InuYasha's son, he has just as much of a right to know what we found as Sesshomaru-sama!"

"Rin, you stupid little—"

"You know what, you little toad?!" Rin said, absolutely unaware of Koyasha's presence as she yelled at Jaken, "I'm tired of you talking down to me! I'm not a little girl anymore if you haven't noticed! So stop treating me like one!"

Koyasha was having a hard time holding back her laughter while she watched the two argue, resorting to biting down on her hand to stop her laughter from exposing her place behind the tree she was standing at.

"Oh… Oh my…" Jaken managed to stammer, his expression one that would make you guess he was about to shit himself.

"Now, Jaken-san," Rin began, smoothing out her kimono with a new found calm, "Let's go try and find InuYasha-sama since we can't find Sesshomaru-sama."

And with that the two walked away, the small toad demon cowering behind the unnaturally calm teenager as they disappeared into the surrounding forest.

So, with her newfound information, Koyasha decided to become a Japanese version of Sherlock Holmes. She jumped out into the small clearing and stuck her nose as close to the ground as she dared, tracking the scents of Sesshomaru's wards in the direction of where they had come from. It took her quite a while to catch a good trail, but when she did, she followed it without problems. And for a long while she found nothing, and it wasn't until the sun was setting in the night sky that she came across anything.

"Wow..." she muttered, standing up when she arrived at what she was sure was her goal, the setting sun setting a glow over the castle not yards away from her.

Below the hill she was standing on lay a magnificent castle bathed in the light of the setting sun, its walls strong and its architecture something Koyasha had never once laid her eyes on. The sight almost entranced the young girl completely, but the fatigue in the young child was much stronger. And before she could do anything, Koyasha found herself sitting on the ground, yawning. Koyasha was smart enough to know that she couldn't sleep out in the open like that, but she wasn't sure where she could sleep. All she did know was that she had reached somewhere near the area that her parents had walked to in one week in less than twenty-four hours, and she was ready to sleep off the long run she had taken. So, after a quick look around her surrounding area, she managed to crawl inside a hollowed out tree, finding just enough room inside it for her to be comfortable.

It didn't take more than thirty seconds for her to fall asleep, cradled in the hollows of the dying tree.

* * *

Kagome sighed, shifting in InuYasha's arms. The sun was creeping up into the morning sky, invading the darkness of her mind. She wasn't very happy with the sun leaking through her eyelids, but she knew she had to get up. InuYasha was probably up anyways...

So, with a yawn, Kagome began to stretch, InuYasha's arms loosening around her.

"Morning," came the soft voice in recognition to her waking.

"We're all up?" came another voice, much to Kagome's displeasure, "Then let's get going."

"Shut up, Amaya. It's barely past dawn and you're pissing me off!"

"Please, InuYasha," Kagome said quietly, slowly opening her eyes as she rubbed the sleep out of them, "Don't argue with anyone right now. It's too early."

For a while the teen and hanyo held peace with one another, Amaya busying herself with picking up the campsite they'd set up between the many trees. InuYasha helped Kagome wake up the best he could, but he could only do so much with all the fatigue pulling at the woman. She had been up late searching and the stress was overwhelming her, but still InuYasha could only find himself to be there to help her keep on going.

"C'mon," Kagome yawned after a while, watching Amaya finish up with the campsite, "Let's get going. Today... is going to be a long day."

InuYasha and the teen agreed to that, both ready to head out for the day. But, just as they were leaving, InuYasha's name was called out.

"InuYasha-sama!" Rin said, poking her head out from behind a tree, a small smile on her face, "InuYasha-sama, I need to tell you something!"

"Shouldn't you be off following my prick of a brother?" InuYasha asked with a bored tone as Kagome took his hand in hers.

"We couldn't find him." Rin explained, stepping out from behind the tree, "But, InuYasha-sama, Jaken-san and I found a castle not a long way from here. Jaken-san said it held a strange demonic aura!"

"A strange aura, huh?"

"Yes."

InuYasha looked around the girl, trying to spy the green imp.

"Where is your 'Jaken-san,' Rin?"

Rin giggled then, confusing the hanyo, "He should be climbing out of the river I threw him in right about now."

InuYasha laughed at that, laughing for the first time in the last week.

"Finally standing up for yourself?"

"Yes, InuYasha-sama, but really, we should be going off to that castle. Jaken-san may be annoying, but he knows when there is danger. And there were no humans at the castle, not even a servant – it has to have something to do with Rikuse-sama!"

InuYasha looked down at Kagome, asking her if they should go off and check it out with a slight tilt of his head, his eyes swimming in something like uncertainty.

"Yeah..." she said after a while, "We should go check it out. If there's a chance Rikuse is there, we have to check it out."

"Fine." InuYasha said, turning his gaze back to his brother's ward, "You coming with?"

"Yeah!"

"No, Rin!" Jaken interrupted, appearing behind the girl, dripping wet, "We must find Lord Sesshomaru!"

"You mean, _you _must find Sesshomaru-sama." Rin said with a cruel edge in her voice, still angry at the toad.

"...When did you become a demon, Rin?" the toad asked, more to himself than to anyone else.

"Hell hath no fury like the wrath of a woman." Amaya stated with a smirk, brushing her bangs out of her face, "Now let's get going!"

--

_Damn. _InuYasha thought in awe as he stared at the castle that lay at the bottom of the hill they stood upon, entranced by the beauty of it. Naraku's castles had been one thing, but the building they stared down at made the spider hanyo's dwellings look like huts.

"Do you really think they could be there?" Kagome asked quietly, slightly intimidated by the sight of the building and the thought of what could be living there.

"Anything is possible." He muttered in response, unable to turn his gaze from the castle.

And moments passed in silence as the four stared down at the castle, none of them able to tear their gaze away.

But, of course, Amaya managed to miss the beauty in the castle after a few minutes. So, instead of appreciating the sight, she walked away, inspecting the area around them. She hadn't missed the signs that someone had been camped in the area recently, so she had decided to investigate while the others decided to stare at the building. And, thanks to her nosiness of someone else's business, Amaya soon found what she had been searching for nestled inside a hollow tree.

At first, all she could do was stare at the sleeping part demon, who had impressively hidden herself from the dangers of night, unable to say a word. But, seconds later she began to laugh quietly, carefully pulling the girl out of her sleeping place without waking her, holding her to her chest so the young part demon rested her head on her shoulder.

"InuYasha...Kagome." Amaya called after she situated the child in her hold, "Someone followed us."

InuYasha turned first, asking what had possessed the teen to think that, only to pause seconds later and stare wide-eyed at his daughter.

"Koyasha..." Kagome said with a distressed tone, staring with disbelief at her daughter.

"That little _shit!" _InuYasha said after a second, referring to his daughter with unneeded vulgarity as he walked over to Amaya and lifted his daughter into his hold.

InuYasha held the child underneath her armpits at arms length, Koyasha's head lolling to the side as she continued undisturbed in her rest.

"Hey, you!" InuYasha said roughly in an annoyed tone, slightly shaking the girl, "Wake up!"

Koyasha did nothing but twitch ever so slightly, not waking.

"_Koyasha!_" InuYasha said a bit louder, shaking the child again, "Wake! Up!"

Koyasha then managed to bring a hand up to her face, rubbing her eye.

"Five more minutes..." the child said softly, unaware of her situation, her words slurred together.

"No, you don't get five more fucking minutes!" InuYasha said, shaking the girl until she opened her eyes.

Koyasha, unfortunately, opened her eyes to the sight of hell's flames firing up inside her father's golden eyes.

"Daddy?" she asked in a frightened high pitched voice, unsure why she was subjected to such a horrifying sight.

Luckily for her, she was taken into her mother's arms and turned away from her father, whom was silently fuming. But, unfortunately, her mother didn't give her a much kinder sight to look at as she was set down on the ground.

"Koyasha," Kagome's voice was smooth and even, "You are in _big_ trouble."

Koyasha, struggling to find a way to quickly change the subject or make her mother forget about what she had just down, resorted to saying the only thing she could think of saying to change the mood.

"I know – but we're about to go get Rikuse, right?"

Kagome, confused, couldn't help but let her angry stare disappear, "What makes you think that? We don't know where he is."

"Really?" Koyasha asked, "Well, y'know that castle down there? That's where he is!"

Kagome's eyes widened, "How do you know something like that?"

"Uhh... Can't you sense him too?" Koyasha asked, confused at why her mother didn't know, "Daddy sensed him, didn't he?"

InuYasha, out of curiosity, focused intently on the castle grounds.

"No," he said after a moment, "I can't sense him down there. But the barrier _is_ obvious."

And now, with the gained information, InuYasha was quick to grab his family into his arms, attempting to jump down the hillside and towards the castle, but Kagome stopped him.

"InuYasha, wait." Kagome said when she managed to get him to put them both down, "We can't just go barging in there!"

"Who says we can't, Kagome?" InuYasha said, a spark flaming up in his eyes that hadn't been there since the final fight with Naraku, "I'm going to go get my son."

"We have to wait for Sesshomaru, InuYasha. And what about Koyasha? There is no way I'm taking my daughter onto a battle field."

"You can stay out here with her."

Kagome suddenly grew very cold, "If you think I'm not going in there, you've got another thing coming your way."

"Kagome–"

"If you argue with me, InuYasha, you can just start digging the hole you'll be plowing yourself into."

"Kagome—"

"I'll stay with her!" Amaya interrupted, "I'll watch her and Rin, since I'm sure Sesshomaru would be more enraged than he already is if you guys took Rin in with you."

InuYasha took a look back over his shoulder at her, nodding, and then took Kagome back into his arms.

"See, everything's going to be taken care of."

"But, InuYasha—"

"Don't worry Kagome. We killed Naraku. There is no fucking way anything could be harder than that, but yet everyone survived, right? Nothing is going to go wrong here. Don't worry. I've got you."

"InuYasha, please," Kagome began, once again forcing InuYasha to set her down, "Let's wait until we have the cover of nightfall."

InuYasha could do nothing but agree, since he knew the battle was one he could not win.

"And so we wait." Amaya said to no one imparticular, lying herself down on the grassy hilltop.

* * *

Rikuse stared up at the darkening sky, perched atop the highest tree in the gardens. Most of his time had been spent here when Misako had left him be, and the boy had been trying to clear his mind of the fog that wouldn't lift. But nothing he tried helped, not with his mind as clouded as it was. His memory had been fogged as well, as if he had merely been an outsider watching the happenings that were his life without a single feeling towards any of the people he had been raised by or met. It was as if he were only held information that meant nothing to him, and he was just there to relay the information to the people who wanted to know it. And, when he could manage it, he found it hard to form even an opinion. He almost... _felt _like a hollow shell. And felt is only used at a loss for a better word, since he couldn't really feel anything.

He was... numb. Everything he was – his mind, his body, his soul – was what seemed irreversibly numbed.

But he did know one thing without any doubt.

Tonight something was going to happen. The moon, if he had been keeping track correctly, would shine in its half form tonight. But his change wouldn't be all that would be happening. There was something else coming, something he couldn't define, that would arrive soon in this peaceful castle.

He just wished he knew how to feel about it.

* * *

"Oh no, mommy."

Koyasha clung to her mother, her dulling gold eyes staring at the setting sun. Her mother wasn't sure what hade caused her daughter's distress at first, but the look that her daughter was giving her told her what it was. Immediately the woman set her daughter in her lap, the young girl clasping her arms around her mother and holding her close, dreading what was to come. Kagome could only allow the small child to bury her face in her shoulder as she cradled her girl as closely as she could, her brown eyes watching the sun nearing to be hidden behind the mountains.

"It's ok, darling," Kagome comforted as she felt her daughter shift painfully in her arms, "You're safe."

"What's going on with her?" InuYasha asked seconds later from his lying spot at Kagome's side, "She ok?"

Kagome just looked up at the sky, spotting the moon above her as the first stars began to shine.

"I wasn't paying attention. Tonight is the half moon."

InuYasha sat up immediately, his golden eyes turning towards his daughter just as the last rays of light shrunk behind the mountains.

Koyasha whimpered then, clinging to her mother as tightly as she could.

And soon pink had turned to black, gold had turned to brown, and her teeth and nails had dulled to a mortal standard.

"Daddy?" the young girl called out after a minute, moving her face to the darkening world to look at her father.

InuYasha took her without a word, cradling the girl in a more parental way than could be thought of him.

"Yes?"

"You'll still go after Rikuse, right? Even though I'm like this. I want you to."

InuYasha hesitated, turning his eyes Kagome's way. She didn't give him an answer in response.

"...Yes... If you feel fine with your mother and I going away tonight."

"It'll be easier if you go." Koyasha said, her hands playing with her human ears, "Rikuse will be human tonight too, I think."

Rin, who had dozed off hours earlier, couldn't comment on the incorrect fact.

But before InuYasha could say another word, a purely demonic howl sounded through the night, ripping through the descending darkness from the walls of the great castle. It rang loud in InuYasha's ears, tugging at him for reasons he wasn't sure of, and he felt the sudden urge to rush towards it.

"It's time to go." Kagome said quietly as she stood, her eyes opening to meet with InuYasha's.

"Yeah." InuYasha said after a minute, transferring his daughter to the uncharacteristically silent Amaya after a final squeeze and standing to join Kagome, taking the young woman into his arms with a graceful sweep.

"Goodbye, Koyasha." Kagome said quietly as she took one last look at her daughter, "I love you."

"I love you too Mama. And you too, Daddy."

"There's no need for goodbyes," InuYasha said as he took one final look back at his daughter, "We'll be back."

"I know you will."

"You take care of her, Amaya," InuYasha said as he jumped off the ground, "Or you _will _meet an early death."

"I know!" Amaya had regained her smile as she called after the hanyo and miko, who were airborne due to InuYasha's leap, nearly out of earshot.

"...There isn't anything to worry about, Kagome," InuYasha said after a moment, "So wipe that sad look off your face. What we're about to do now is nothing like fighting that Naraku bastard. This is gonna be a hell of a lot easier than that was. No one is gonna die or anything."

Kagome could only nod as she watched the castle near closer to them as they lost altitude, memories of her final battle seeping into her mind's eye.

"_Your fate was to take Midoriko's place and die in this time, dear miko. And even if you don't die now, and even if the shikon jewel no longer holds a single physical form, your fate will not be changed. As long as the power of the shikon jewel remains, their will be the darkness to fight. I am that darkness. One day, Kagome, you will join me in the endless battle."_

Naraku's final words to her lingered in her mind, encasing her in a chill she hadn't felt in years. But she didn't fully realize how strong that cold was in that moment as her adrenaline began to pulse, and she didn't manage to feel the icy iron grip latch onto her soul as InuYasha landed gracefully at the palace gates.

* * *

**A/N: And so it begins. Almost.  
**

**There is now a website up, made by me, for this story. I did it because someone asked and I had time to waste. Here's the link, (remove the spaces since doesn't allow linking) www. freewebs. com/unknownlives**

**I had to name it "Unknown Lives" since "Unknown Life" was already taken. Please visit! There is a freewebs-style forum, character bio (which is under slight construction, but most everything is there and finished), and other stuff. I'll get more there eventually, but it will be a while.**

**Thanks for reading, reviewing, and putting up with me!**


	13. Hello

Misako was sure she was going to die right there. Red eyes were staring down at her, hot breath blowing her hair back like the wind would. For the first time in her life she felt terrified, and if her bladder hadn't been empty at that moment, she probably would have pissed herself.

"You... you..." her words weren't coming out correctly, so she just shut her mouth after a moment, speechless.

The large dog in front of her just blew another exhaled breath at her, the warm air flowing around her face. The red in his eyes was a piercing ruby, seeing through the young woman in front of him. His usual mind set was clouded with the transformation he had gone under, but he was just the same as he always was – just considerably stronger. Yet, that same fog was still there, to Misako's great luck.

The dog's lip curled up as a low growl erupted from the back of his throat, revealing a gleaming white fang. He wasn't actually trying to scare Misako; in fact he was trying to communicate with her in a way she couldn't understand, but his goal with highly misunderstood as she began to shake in fear. And, in realizing that he was about to give the woman a heart attack, the large dog stopped trying to communicate all together. He took a step back, miraculously not destroying anything in the garden with his large paw, and made a sound something like a sigh. In seconds he was encased in a blue tornado of energy, transforming once again in the second night.

Misako's expression didn't change, as she thought her pathetic reign on this world was to come to an abrupt and violent end, but she was far from wrong. She wasn't able to fully comprehend what type of power she had in her arsenal for the next twelve hours of night, which would ultimately become her downfall.

"What are you so afraid of?" a young boy asked as the blue tornado calmed around him, "I already told you – I turn into a monster. Why are you so surprised?"

Misako's expression changed completely in that second. Rikuse was standing before her, his silver hair hanging straight down around his face, the light of the half moon creating a glow on his pale skin. She was... _awed_ at how beautiful he was.

"You're... You're..." Misako couldn't get the words off her tongue.

"What? A monster?"

"No..."

"A demon? Yes, I am. For tonight."

"How..."

"I don't know. But I would like to warn you I'm much more... _aggressive _and _temperamental _on nights such as these. I'm not in the mood for any of your human stupidities for the following hours of night."

Misako, with a sudden pull back down onto earth, decided that it didn't matter that Rikuse had transformed. He was still her item – her possession – and he would not address her as something lower than he. But just as she opened her mouth she was cut off by a large explosion out near the main entrance, and Rikuse was soon nowhere near her, but rather up in the tallest tree in the gardens, spotting out where the explosion had come from.

"What do you want me to do?" Rikuse called after a second, his golden gaze down on the woman, "Should I fight them now or leave you to your doom?"

* * *

Boredom was something Koyasha just wasn't accustomed to. The moon practically inched across the sky, only aggravating her sudden need to itch. Worse yet, this castle was calling to her, incessantly breathing her very name. Her brother needed her help--a wimp like that couldn't possibly survive as a complete human for a night.

She needed out. But Amaya was still there...how could she possibly get out? Then again, she had gotten away from the slayer's parents. This couldn't be too much harder...

Koyasha gambled another glance up at her apparent captor, and soon shifted painfully in the girl's arms. "Owwww..." she whimpered, her voice irritating as it was pitiful, "My head hurts..."

Amaya looked towards her with obvious fatigue, but pretended to care. "Why does your head hurt, Koyasha?"

The girl coughed dryly. "I'm really, really thirsty!" She bit her lip, whining quietly as she wriggled in the slayer's grip. "I want water..."

Clearly, her babysitter was less than amused. Yet she was too tired to really think about it. "If I give you some water, will you go back to sleep?"

"Yes..."

Amaya groaned audibly as she set her down, moving towards the small camp they had set up to fetch the water. But unbeknownst to the poor slayer, Koyasha's sudden giggle meant more than she realized. Koyasha sprang up with surprising speed, and rushed with that same surprising speed out of the forest. By the time Amaya had turned around, the girl had all but vanished. The curses that followed were almost as loud as InuYasha's attempt at a "surprise."

* * *

InuYasha just laughed when Kagome said something about him not being able to tell what "the element of surprise" was if it bit him in the ass as he blew up the front gates of the castle. He didn't really care what she had to say at the moment, he just wanted to go in there, get rid of his stalker and take his son back. And maybe, just possibly, they'd all get out of there as a family before Sesshomaru showed up. But, then again, trying to run from Sesshomaru was like trying to kill Kikyo. It never really worked.

With a quick movement Kagome managed to escape from InuYasha's hold once he had barged inside the main entrance of the castle, reaching to her back out of habit to grab for an arrow. But then she realized...

She_ didn't have _a weapon.

But, luckily and conveniently, she spotted a display of samurai swords hanging on the wall directly in front of the entrance. A sword might not be her choice weapon, but if she could manage to use a sword like InuYasha did – by widely brandishing and swinging the weapon while yelling at the top of his lungs and unlocking powers within his weapon by complete accident – she'd be fine. She'd seen enough of him to be able to pick it up. It wasn't exactly a hard skill to swing around a sword without any training. So, as InuYasha said something about he would go one way and she'd go the other, she took middle sized sword out of the three from its place and began her way down the left hall as InuYasha took to the right. On any normal occasion, InuYasha would have made her stay beside him, but this wasn't a normal occasion. They were up against mortals. No big deal, right?

"So," Kagome jumped when the voice sounded out along the hallway she had just entered, a door sliding open to her right, a young woman coming into her view, "You're the whore."

Kagome took a defensive stance out of habit, despite the fact that the stance would have been much more effective if she'd been using a bow, but it worked with a sword none the less.

"Who are you?" Kagome asked warily, ignoring the side of her that wanted her to cuss the woman out for insulting her.

The woman didn't answer immediately, choosing to close on the space in between herself and Kagome instead.

"Who do you think you are to talk to me in such a way, little girl?" the woman asked in mocking tones, "Do you really think that _you _could be stronger than_ me_?"

"I really don't care who you are," Kagome said with an annoyed spark in her eyes, "And I really don't care how powerful you may think you are. But trust me, there are so many different things that I have seen and thought that would make you piss your pants right here. I'm not afraid of you. On the contrary, _you _should be afraid of _me_, since, after all, I am the mother of the boy you kidnapped."

Instead of the reaction that Kagome expected, the woman laughed, tossing some of her long black hair back over her shoulders.

"You really think you're stronger than me, whore? Well, we'll just have to put that to the test now, won't we?" The woman put a finger to her lips in thought before she spoke again, "Alright, let's see. I kidnapped your son, while he was in the presence of more than one demon, and he hasn't struggled once against me. I took control of your son's mind... Oh, and of course, there is the fact that my dear InuYasha is wandering around aimlessly in an illusion right now as well. And, over all, I really think the powers of a witch like me would trump those of an ex-miko, don't you think?"

Kagome opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted before she could make a sound.

"Y'know, I might be hanyo, but I'm not stupid."

"InuYasha!" the two women spoke the exclamation in unison, neither caring of the action.

"How did you get through the illusion, dear?!" the woman asked with a false innocence, "I set it up just for you!"

"Like I said, I'm not stupid. Misako, your silly little illusions and tricks aren't going to be able to beat me. Do you really think I'd let Kagome walk around here all alone anyways? Hell no! I just wanted to throw you off guard so you'd come out in the open quicker," as the hanyo spoke he took his place at Kagome's side, "Now, bitch, let's get down to business. Unless you want your pretty little head to be torn off of that scrawny little neck, you'll tell me where my son is. Got it?"

Kagome, though proud of her hanyo, knew most of his little speech was just a lie. She'd bet money that he'd walked into the illusion unsuspecting, noticed something was wrong, and swung Tetsusaiga around at the walls until he found a seam in the spell, then blew it away with the wind scar. Or, at least, something to that extent.

Misako went into a sudden pout, "Why do you protect her like you do? She's just a carbon copy of that bitch Kikyo – who would rather have you dead – and she has that stupid fetish for wolves. She's not going to be loyal like I would. Hell, she didn't even tell you that she gave birth to your children! She just decided to run away and raise them on her own, and hide away from you because she didn't _trust _you. How can you love someone after they hurt you like that!?"

"Keh. Don't talk about things you don't understand." InuYasha ordered, "What happened between us is our business, bitch. Not yours. No go get me my son!"

Misako just glared at the two of them for a moment, her brain running like crazy to try and figure out how she could take these people on. Kagome would be no problem – it was the problem of incapacitating InuYasha without hurting him.

But, just as she thought InuYasha was going to tear her head off, her eye caught something just behind them. She could barely see the small child in the shadows, but her eyes managed to catch the gleam of the child's eyes.

"Well, InuYasha, dear," Misako began as she inspected the nails on one of her hands, "I gave you a chance to just come to me and let me get rid of these nuisances you call family, but I guess we'll just have to do this the hard way."

InuYasha was about to point yet another vulgarity the witch's way, but an ear piercing scream tore through the night's air before he could make a single sound.

* * *

"_Shut up_!" the word was spoken with a slight annoyance and urgency as Rikuse quickly wrapped his tail around his younger sister, pulling her into the room through the glass-less window she had seen him through. The fact that he wasn't actually speaking, rather, he was growling, just managed to frighten his sister more, even though, if she had been paying attention, she would have understood him. So, with a final decision to silence the ear piercing screams his sister was echoing through the gardens, Rikuse managed to wrap his tail around his sibling's mouth as well.

The relief that swept over him when her screams faded could not be described in words.

"_Koyasha, pay attention_." Rikuse ordered when he thought his sister was calm enough to actually process any type of thought, "_I know you can understand me. Nod if your mortal form isn't a barrier causing you to lose the ability to understand yokai_."

Though Koyasha didn't exactly know what the big words meant, she managed to nod none the less, going on a guess of what the huge dog meant.

"_Koyasha, I am your brother_."

The young child managed to get her mouth free of its bonds then, speaking the first thing that came to her mind, like she usually did.

"Mommy had a puppy for a baby?"

"_No, you imbecile_!" Rikuse said with what sounded like a sigh, "_I am Rikuse!"_

"Rikuse?!" Koyasha said, squirming her way out of the large dog's hold, "Rikuse! You're supposed to be human!"

"_No, that is not my transformation. It may be your transformation, as well as Father's, but it is not mine. I turn into a full fledged yokai_."

"Cool!"

Rikuse made the sighing noise again at his sister incapability to understand or process the situation, but didn't let it get to him. He had more pressing matters to attend to first.

"_Koyasha, why are you here?_"

"I'm here to find you! Mommy and Daddy are here too! We're gonna take you back!"

"_Koyasha, listen to me. Listen to me very carefully._"Rikuse instructed, grabbing his sister's attention in some sort of miracle, "_You must find a way to make sure Mother does not find me. Please, sister, you must keep her as far away from me as possible. If Father wishes to do so, he may fetch me, but keep our Mother away from me at all costs!_"

"Why?"

"_It is something I cannot explain. Now, Koyasha, leave this castle. Leave and take Mother with you. I am confident that Father can handle himself here on his own._"

"If I do, will you come back with us."

"_Possibly. Only time will tell. Now leave, Koyasha, before Mother tries to come after you or seeks after me._"

But, despite all of his trouble to keep his family safe underneath the strain of his enchantment, nothing could stop what was meant to happen. Somewhere inside himself, whether he has his wisdom in his demon form or his curiosity in his normal form, he knew he couldn't change things that weren't meant to happen. Of course, he could try, and he might be able to prevent the inevitable for a little while longer. But, in the end, all attempts could not stop what was meant to be. And somehow, at his young age, he understood that. But he wanted to _try_.

He just wanted his mother to live.

* * *

"What the hell was that?!" InuYasha asked to no one in particular, having found nothing at the site of the scream.

"It was..." Kagome couldn't gather up the pieces that she had broken into. The scream had struck her hard, and the pure fear in it had torn her in two. It was a maternal instinct that she knew who it was, and it was also her maternal instinct that was crippling her.

"Judging by your little whore's reaction, I would say it's that little pink haired brat of yours, InuYasha." Misako said, quite aware of where the child was and whom she was with.

"...Koyasha!" Kagome managed to choke out her daughter's name, hoping she would receive a small girl's voice in answer. But no such thing came.

"What?!" InuYasha was enraged, "She was with Amaya."

"She's like you..." Kagome was too shocked to cry, "She'll find a way to do something she thinks she has to do."

Misako was inwardly happy, and had a perfect line for the moment, but she never got it out. Instead, she cried out in pain as something pulled at her hair. But, after a moment, she realized something was _climbing _up her hair! And, moments later, she felt something that was a good sixty to seventy pounds sitting upon her head.

"Mommy!"

Kagome's horror of seeing where her daughter was drowned out her relief and even InuYasha, who was always willing to act in the loudest manner he could, wasn't able to take action because of his pure shock.

Misako wasn't sharing the couple's feelings though. She was absolutely enraged at the child on her head, and soon managed to grasp at the girl's collar and pull her from the top of her head.

"Let go of me, butthead!" Koyasha said, automatically beginning to squirm and struggle against the surprisingly strong hand that had her prisoner.

"You'll put down my daughter right now, you bitch!"

Kagome was the one who sounded then, taking the sword she had stolen from the walls and pointing at the witch's throat in mere seconds.

Misako just laughed as she tossed the young girl back in through the open door that the child had just come through, the one that she had previously entered through as well, knowing that the threat the woman was putting against her would disappear the moment the child's fate wasn't obvious. And, as predicted, Kagome just dropped the sword and rushed after her daughter, leaving the witch and hanyo alone for that single moment.

"I'm sorry, InuYasha dear," Misako began as she lifted her right hand up, palm out towards him, "But I really can't have you interfering with this."

--

Kagome dropped down to her knees the moment she was close enough to her daughter, whom was sitting on the ground and rubbing at her bottom, which had taken most of the damage when she had been thrown. Immediately the mother brought her daughter into her embrace, just glad that the young girl was safe. But the young girl seemed... _scared._

"Mommy! Mommy – you have to leave!" Koyasha warned when she wrestled her way out of her mother's embrace.

"No one's leaving, child." Misako announced just seconds later as she slid the door into the castle closed, an evil smirk on her face, "Rikuse, dear, would you open your eyes."

Kagome automatically directed her attention away from her daughter, searching frantically for the human version of her son. But, instead of finding any one else, she was face to face with what she thought was Sesshomaru.

_Why would he be...?_

She was panicking. The last time Sesshomaru had turned into this form in her presence she had almost died. He would not take this form unless there was really something that he felt was extremely dangerous. But, in a split second, she realized this wasn't Sesshomaru. The large dog lying not far in front of her was lacking a crescent moon marking, and this dog was considerably smaller. She was awestruck at the sight of the demon, but her mind soon found its purpose. Where was her son?

But before she could take another look, the sound of the door closing again caught her attention. With a quick look over her shoulder she could see that Misako had deserted the area, and that was when she finally realized the danger. Subconsciously she positioned herself in front of her daughter, her eyes not leaving the dog.

The small growl that erupted from the dog then made Kagome jump, but Koyasha just tugged at her mother's shirt.

"Mommy..." the young girl muttered, "Mommy, we have to go. Rikuse said we have to go _now._"

Kagome spun to face her daughter, "Rikuse?"

"That's Rikuse, Mommy." Koyasha explained, her voice quiet, "And we have to leave right now."

Kagome spun back around to face the large dog then, her brown eyes searching over the large demon. Now that she was giving it her full attention, she knew her daughter was probably right. But whether or not they really should leave was a fact she couldn't decide on. Yet the calm demeanor of the demon was starting to fade, and his facial muscles were visually twitching. After seeing InuYasha fight so many inner demons, Kagome was fully aware that this meant the dog was fighting against something internally.

"Rikuse..." Kagome said quietly, gathering up the courage to walk up to the demon that was her son, "Rikuse, let's go home."

His eyes snapped open then, red meeting brown with an unexpected intensity. Kagome knew that she had made her mistake by not listening to her daughter as the anger from her son's eyes drilled into her, but she didn't regret anything.

"Koyasha, dear," Kagome said quietly, looking over her shoulder at her daughter as the Rikuse began to bring himself to his feet, a large growl sounding through the room, "Please go find your father."

"Mommy—"

"Go now Koyasha." Kagome said, interrupting her daughter as she turned her attention back up to her son, "And remember that I always loved you."

But Koyasha didn't leave. She was too frozen in shock to do so. Instead she watched her brother lower his large head down to his mother's eye level, growling menacingly her way. But instead of recoiling and running like she thought her mother would, Koyasha watching in horror as her mother lifted a hand up to touch Rikuse's face, whispering something she couldn't hear over the growling. And Koyasha couldn't find the will to move when Rikuse swiped his paw at Kagome, sending the young woman crashing through the walls.

The impact broke the wall she had been rammed into, Kagome falling to land in a ball on the wooden floors of the hallway. Somehow she'd managed to stay conscious, and now she watched her son close in on her, the swirling black of a spell clouding the ruby in his eyes. She was aware it wasn't his fault, and she knew she was going to die soon if she didn't raise a hand in defense, but she wasn't going to harm her son. She just couldn't bring herself to do it.

So, with the most strength she could muster, she pulled herself out of the opening she had created. If she could help it, she wasn't going to allow her daughter to see this.

She was going to die.

And for some reason, she didn't have a problem with it.

* * *

"_Playground school bell rings again  
Rain clouds come to play again  
Has no one told you she's not breathing?  
Hello  
I'm your mind giving you someone to talk to  
Hello  
If I smile and don't believe  
Soon I know I'll wake from this dream  
Don't try to fix me,I'm not broken  
Hello__  
I am the lie living for you so you can hide  
Don't cry  
Suddenly I know I'm not sleeping  
Hello  
I'm still here!  
All that's left of yesterday"_

-Evanescence; _"Hello"_


	14. Exile

He was floating. There was nothing above him or below him; he was just floating there in the darkness. He had lost all of his senses – he couldn't hear, he couldn't see, he couldn't speak – but yet there was still that small sense that there was a world somewhere around him. And, as always, there was the comforting knowledge that Kagome was nearby. As long as he had known her, there had always been that connection. Even when he was asleep, or even when she wasn't in the same time period as he was, there had always been the knowledge – no, the feeling – that she was somewhere around him. Maybe it was because of his subjugation beads. Or maybe it was because he loved her that much. But either way, her presence was always there.

So when it disappeared, so did he.

Or, at least, that's what it had felt like. He had just felt so empty the moment she wasn't there anymore, he almost forgot he existed. And without the ability to really do anything, all he could do was let reality sink into him. For some reason, he didn't even bother to wonder why it was gone. It was just gone.

And it hurt. It really hurt.

"_InuYasha!"_

Suddenly he was standing, and everything was back. Except her. She was gone. But, for some reason, he could see her. It was almost as if Kaguya of the Moon was back with her mirror, taking away his humanity. Except, this time, he wasn't the one who was slipping away. It was Kagome, who was fading into the darkness as the seconds slipped away.

_Kagome...!_

He began to run, but the faster his legs moved, the darker she got.

_Kagome! No!_

He could barely see her now, and he was sure he was about to rip his leg muscles into shreds.

_No! I can't lose you again!_

But no matter what he did, no matter what he tried, she just got darker. He strained his eyes to see what was left of her outline, to see her face. He wanted to save her. He wanted to save her...

"_Dammit, InuYasha!" _he heard the voice, but he didn't pay attention to it. He had to save Kagome before anything else.

"_InuYasha!" _the voice was too loud to ignore, _"InuYasha, wake up!"_

And then his eyes tore open to the face of the teenager.

But he didn't stop to look at Amaya. Rather, with that same emptiness inside of him, he got to his feet without hesitation, tearing into the room Misako had thrown his daughter in.

All he could remember was the sight of Koyasha crying over her mother's body and a demon that looked like Rikuse collapsed in horror on the other side of the room.

* * *

Rikuse didn't remember what had happened in detail. He remembered fighting against whatever wanted him to kill his mother, fighting for control of his own body, but then losing to it. He had hit her through a wall, and he could remember the thought of tearing her apart in his jaws to finish her off before his sister had jumped in front of him and screamed his name. That was the point that he could remember things clearer, when he had gotten most of the control over his body back, even as the spell made pain course throughout his being. He had even managed to revert back to a human form as his mother had gotten up on her knees, the fog in his mind unable to decide to stay or go. But he had regained control of himself none the less. He had to leave while he still had that control, and while he had the will not to follow through with the order to kill his own mother. And while the spell was strong, he knew he had to be stronger.

But when he had turned to run, Koyasha stopped him. With one hand clutched to his kimono sleeve, the young girl directed his attention towards their mother, who had one hand held out toward him. He could tell by the look in her eyes that she was awestruck, but he hadn't really been sure why. Maybe it was just because she was a mother who had just found her son after she had thought she'd lost him forever, or maybe it was something else. He hadn't allowed his mind to wander on the topic though.

"Rikuse, dear, come here."

The sound of his mother's voice struck a pain of guilt in his chest. Her breathing was ragged and her voice was strained to a point where it sounded painful. And _he _had been the cause of it.

"Mother, I need to go."

He could still feel the amount of surprise that he had felt when his mother had stood and walked over to him quite clearly, her movements slow and pain stricken. He had walked the rest of the way over to her, unable to see her in such a pain. Without a single word she set a hand on his cheek as she had dropped down to her knees in front of him, and the fog had lifted completely.

"I love you, Rikuse."

And then there had been Misako, bearing the very same sword his mother had used to threaten her.

Koyasha had screamed.

He had stumbled backwards and fallen over.

But his mother's face hadn't changed a single bit as the sword had sliced through her chest, impaling her completely. At the time, he hadn't seen it, but even through all the pain and the pouring red blood, Kagome had kept that look of love in her eyes as she fell to her side.

Even with her last breath she had loved them. She had loved all of them. InuYasha, Koyasha, Rikuse, Shippo, Miroku, Sango, their children, Rin, Sesshomaru, Koga, Jaken, and her family from another era all still held their spots. Even as her vision had begun to fade, her lungs screaming for the air she couldn't receive, they were there. Even her enemies held the places in her heart, each of them pitied in some way.

And when Koyasha had crawled over to her mother's body, brown eyes feared with tears and fear, Kagome had still managed to comfort her. She had cupped her daughter's cheek in her hand and whispered that she would always love her, the pain of life slowly slipping away.

"Mommy, don't die."

"Koyasha... will you do... something... for me?" Rikuse could hear his mother's gasped words all too clearly.

"Of course Mommy," Koyasha had said through her sobs.

"Tell your father... I love him... And everyone else... tell them that... too..."

"Ok, Mommy... You just have to stay... Please... Just stay!"

"I'll stay... with you... until I can't... any longer..." Kagome drew in what Rikuse could tell was her last breath, "I love you, Koyasha... You and Rikuse..."

And then the brown eyes that had held so much love, that had seen so many things, and that had held so many smiles, died.

That was when his father had broken in, Amaya directly behind him. Koyasha had begun to cry and InuYasha hadn't been able to move. Amaya had turned away immediately, pulling someone else close to her chest to allow them to never see such a sight.

In the end, they had all loved her too.

And, horror struck at what he had caused, Rikuse had run.

* * *

Sesshomaru hadn't cared what happened to Jaken. He had left him there once his words of his report were finished, heading towards this castle in all his speed. The half moon that shined so brightly above him as an obvious warning to what many things could happen that night, and even this great taiyokai couldn't even fully comprehend the real horrors that had just happened in that castle. Even his speed couldn't help him.

What was done was done.

And when he had broken through the forest and stopped on the edge of that hill top, his golden eyes wandering over the castle that had obviously already been infiltrated, he had seen the flash of white coming his way. Only his eyes could catch the detail of the great dog in complete, and Sesshomaru's emotions at that time could not be explained. Yes, he had found his nephew. But what had caused such distress was something he didn't know.

"Rikuse."

But in a brief glimpse of fur, that creature vanished—the _boy_ vanished, ignoring the man that had raised him since his birth.

Sesshomaru didn't matter.

Rin didn't matter.

_He _didn't matter.

Sesshomaru was not one to be ignored, though.

But it didn't matter how much the taiyokai would search that night. Rikuse wouldn't be found if he didn't want to be found. From that day on – from the day of his mother's death – Rikuse had personally exiled himself from his own family.


	15. The Sky is Crying

When Sesshomaru had entered the castle, as InuYasha had held Kagome's body close, Tenseiga was not to be of any use. It would not respond to the call of its master, nor of his will. Tenseiga had fallen completely silent, becoming what Sesshomaru had always known it was. That night, Tenseiga was just the useless sword that could not cut. And when InuYasha had snapped, when any rational thinking had shut down and he had been reverted to a basic demonic instinct, Sesshomaru hadn't held up a hand in defense when his younger brother had attacked him. Yes, he had dodged the blows with the same grace, but he didn't say a word or retaliate. He just waited, always keeping clear of the others in the vicinity, for his brother to fall. For that night, Sesshomaru had allowed his younger sibling to do what he wished. In his own way, Sesshomaru had been something of a brother toward InuYasha. And when the hanyo had fallen in pure fatigue, Sesshomaru had placed Tetsusaiga in its place at InuYasha's side and laid the hanyo on the floor beside the body of his love and his child, taking his true form. The magnificent dog demon proceeded in carrying his family on his back, leaving the castle in great bounds of speed. Amaya and Rin had followed behind on the two headed dragon, but Sesshomaru had soon left them behind, traveling under the night sky in silence.

At that time in the night the demon slaying family had too shed their tears when they had received Sesshomaru outside their house, carefully lifting the bodies off of the beast's back. And then the great dog demon reverted back to the human form he was recognizable in, taking his niece into his arms without a single word when they had all rest in heavy silence inside the walls of the house. When Koyasha had cried into the taiyokai's chest he hadn't stopped her, he had just embraced her with a single arm. Eventually she too fell asleep in his arms, and he simply laid her in a bed the family had provided for her, leaving to the small clearing outside the house. He sat on the wooden walk way outside the walls of the house with his one arm propped up on his knee, his golden eyes drawn towards the sky. And for a long time he sat there in silence, mulling over his thoughts with a raw emotion he didn't think he would feel in a situation like this. But, for some reason, he didn't bother to stop himself from feeling some sort of emotion. Yes, he felt sad. He wasn't sure why, but he accepted the fact. A member of his family was dead, another missing, and his own brother in pieces. How could he not feel _something_?

And in the early hours of morning, when the sun hadn't yet shown a ray of light across the sky, his brother had stepped outside the house. Sesshomaru had looked up at him, silently meeting eyes with his brother. The emotion he could see in his younger brother's was so raw and true that Sesshomaru didn't make a single movement or comment against this hanyo half-brother, but rather just returned his attention to the skies. And after a few moments he watched his brother run off into the forest, only to see him return hours later with dirt smeared across his face and clothes, clods of earth jammed underneath the finger nails on his raw red hands. Sesshomaru stood then, turning towards his brother in the calmest way, the gold in both their eyes meeting without anger.

"Do you want me to stay?"

InuYasha turned away when his brother spoke, walking back into the house as he murmured a quiet response.

"She'd want you to stay."

--

The funeral had taken place that day under a cloudy sky, the shade of the Goshinboku shrouding everyone present with a sense of loss. There had been no words of ceremony when the brothers had silently lay the miko in her grave, the beauty of life completely lost from the woman's pale skin. Kaede had dressed the girl accordingly for her final place of rest, making the body that had held no life so beautiful in a dark way. But InuYasha could barely look at the woman as he and Sesshomaru had carefully placed her in the grave he had dug for her, dreading to see the sight of the woman he had failed to protect. And when he and Sesshomaru had jumped out of the grave and silently covered her body in earth, InuYasha hadn't bothered to stop his tears. Koyasha, her eyes red and puffy from the tears that continued to streak down her face, had eventually came over and pushed some dirt in herself beside her father, her usually happy face drawn in an unforgiving sadness.

And when the dirt was packed back into the ground, Kagome's body deep beneath the surface, Sesshomaru had left with Rin and Jaken without speaking a word to his brother or for the miko, silently leaving what respects he thought necessary. Then one by one the people left after saying their words for Kagome, following suit with Sesshomaru's departure. And soon only InuYasha and Koyasha were left, the daughter held tight in her father's arms as they sat on the ground, silent with their tears.

"Mommy said she loved you, Daddy..." Koyasha muttered as she rested her head in his chest, "She said I had to tell you that."

"...She loved you too, Koyasha," InuYasha's voice was quiet, his tears still sliding silently down his cheeks as he held his daughter even closer to his chest, "I know she did."

And for hours the two sat there in each other's arms, until finally the tears subsided simply because there seemed to be no more tears left to cry. Even then they continued to sit in silence in one another's embrace, unable to shake the feeling of loss.

"Daddy..." Koyasha said silently as the sound of water falling came to her ears, "the sky is crying too."

InuYasha lifted his head to see the rain falling around them, quickly turning into the downpour that drenched them both.

"We should go back now." InuYasha said quietly, picking his daughter up in his arms as he got to his feet.

Koyasha nodded in response, all words caught in her throat as she gave one last look at her mother's name inscribed in the bark of the Goshinboku.

_I'll bring him back, Mommy. I'll bring Rikuse here one day. I promise._

And then they were gone, retreating to the huts of the village, leaving the woman they both loved buried deep beneath the earth underneath a crying sky.

Somehow, life moved on.


	16. Interlude: The Dark Prince

**Part II**

**Eight Years since Kagome's Death**

_"I must go on standing  
You can't break that which isn't yours  
I, oh, must go on standing  
I'm not my own, it's not my choice"_

_-_Regina Spektor; "Apres Moi"

* * *

Though the moon was bright that night, it was anything but spectacular. Only a half-moon. That light could hardly penetrate the jade canopy of the forest; its presence was ignored by Japan. But to the strange youkai that maneuvered its light, this was salvation. He was the prince of this night. That dim, glistening light, caught in his silver hair, was as close as he would ever come to redemption. However, this wasn't the reason he searched now. There was a more important reason for his long neglected reign.

"Master Rikuse!" A young kitsune swiftly sprinted towards his youkai dominant, though his thick mass of blonde hair continuously whipped him in the face. "Wait! Why why do you have to be so fast...?"

The demon did not even think of halting. He moved through the forest with cruel grace, allowing the young fox hardly a moment to catch his trail. "If you find it tiresome, Kazu, then leave me be."

"But Master..." Kazu groaned, running as fast as his short legs could possibly take him. He didn't like where they were going. The air around it was too foreboding, too solemn. The closer Rikuse drew to that dark cave, the more condensed that air became. "Please tell me you're not going in there, Master Rikuse, I think there's going to be big monster people in there...what if they eat me?"

"I'll have less buzzing in my ear."

Rikuse obviously did not care about the coldness of his prior comment. He stepped through the entrance of that dark cave without another word, leaving Kazu to whimper far behind him.

The cave was exactly as he expected. Everything around him was dripping, though only one faint plink could be heard. A musty, putrid stench emanated from the watery end of the cavern, the foul odor seeping into every crevice of his being. But even when the toad's cackling laugh shook the damp walls, Rikuse felt only minor annoyance. By the time he heard the young kitsune skid through the entrance, the demon had already approached the massive toad that sat atop that slimy lily pad.

"You are the oracle Madoka."

That toad cackled once again, its massive throat shivering with the feat. "Aye. And you are the shifting half-prince, Rikuse, no?" He crowed with amusement, shivering until the slime began to drip away from his hackneyed eyelids. "My, you're a pretty one," he chuckled, sliding his long tongue over his lips as he observed the demon. "Nice tall frame, pitiless eyes—wouldn't even think you were half. Such flesh must be a treat..."

The youkai raised his hand, allowing the dim light of the cave to illuminate his lethal claws. "It would be in your best interest not to play with me." The toad's subdued chuckle was enough. Rikuse slowly curled his hand before the creature, allowing him to see the full, deceptive glow of their poison before lowering his arm. "Repulsive as you are, apparently some god saw fit to give you worth. Your most recent vision involves me, am I correct?"

"Perhaps..."

A series of sickening splashes followed, as another shake of the toad's massive body had dislodged enough slime to coat much of the cave. The pond beneath Madoka was saturated with such filth, creating a cesspool so foul Rikuse lusted for air. He raised his hand again, letting only a drop of his venom drip onto the fetid ground. "I told you, Madoka," he said, his low voice far crueler than any growl. "It would be in your best interest not to play with me. Tell me your prophesy, or you will find there are fates to live that far outweigh death."

From that single drop came a steady stream of smoke, its odor fouler than Madoka's slime—but where it had fallen, there was but a small, gaping hole. With only a glimpse at this, the creature froze, its laughter forgotten. True fear glimmered in his marsh-like eyes. A low croak rang through the cave, and Madoka's mouth creaked open.

_"A Lord's young daughter wails in the night  
Unaware of the misfortune she brings  
Before she even has the will to fight  
For our twilight prince  
It is a song of death, she now sings"_

Simple words, for such a complicated prophesy. But Rikuse knew better than to overcomplicate anything. He knew the young daughter Madoka referred to. From there, the meaning was simple.

This girl would be the death of him.

He looked at Madoka for a long moment, as his hand began to twitch with impatience. "Are you aware, of exactly what you have just told me?"

The toad closed his mouth, cackling once again at a fact Rikuse did not care to know. It did not matter to him. "No, but I suppose it's bad news," the toad said, chuckling.

Rikuse narrowed his eyes, raising his hand once again. "If I were in a good mood, your ignorance might amuse me." He examined his claws for just a moment, almost smiling at how perfectly oblivious Madoka remained. Of course, what Madoka thought now was of little consequence. His claws flashed cruelly, for only the briefest moment. The youkai heard young Kazu inch towards him, from behind—he could hear the fear in his trembling step. It mattered not. In that following instant, the demon named Madoka slowly oozed into a mass of scarlet slime. Rikuse turned back towards the light of the entrance, absently clenching and unclenching his loose fist. Kazu's awed expression didn't receive a second thought.

"I don't like bad news."

* * *

Rin's pain ravaged her body. Only vaguely could she hear the midwives moving around her, one urging her on incessantly. It was hardly comforting. But she couldn't run from this agony, not if she wanted to finally prove herself to her lord. Now, she had no choice. The view of the half-lit moon from the glass window remained her only comfort.

"You're doing very well," said a young midwife. "Especially trying to deliver a hanyou child…"

She was trying to care, but the indifference was just too essential to her sanity. Though a soothing breeze helped cool her damp skin, even that did little to relieve her. A new, sharper pain hit her suddenly, almost shattering what little detachment she had managed to maintain. "I can see the baby," she heard someone say. More frantic statements followed; however, she herself had begun to panic. If it was so close, why had the pain worsened so?

_Lord Sesshoumaru…please don't let me mess up…_

The sudden commotion was quick to meet her lord's ears—perhaps swifter than expected, since he stood right outside the heavy door. Yet, he remained as impassive as ever. Only the small toad-demon that stood so loyally at his side could have possibly taken notice of him. Naturally, Jaken took that moment to pester the demon. After all, the only thing he seemed good at was making a general nuisance of himself.

"Lord Sesshoumaru?" he screeched, foolishly prodding the youkai with his gnarled stick. "Your child is almost here, and you show so little emotion! Don't you think you should go help poor Rin?"

The youkai did not even move to look at him, though his eye showed the faintest twitch. "There is nothing I could do for the girl."

"But my lord!"

Sesshoumaru gave Jaken a firm, bone chilling glare, suspecting that would end the subject. But, naturally, this was no hindrance to the foolish imp. Apparently his own trembling could not warn his tongue. "So you chose a woman you don't even care about to continue your legacy?"

The youkai's eyes became portals to a world of unfeeling massacre. However, that emotion was gone in less than a moment—the only trace of it a large, throbbing lump on Jaken's head. The imp could barely sob without feeling pain. "You're amazing…lord Sesshoumaru…"

Once more, the youkai's expression had become unreadable. When the woman's shouts came, he seemed not to hear them. Only when someone emerged from the room did he look up at all. It was just one of the young midwives. Sesshoumaru almost lost interest in that same moment. Yet the moment she raised her voice, the awareness returned to his eyes.

"You have a daughter, Sesshoumaru-sama. Lady Rin has called her 'Saiyuri'."

The world seemed still. At last, a baby's cry sounded from the room, so soft it could have been an angel's chime. For the briefest moment…it seemed the youkai began to smile. Of course, Jaken's shrill voice caused it to disappear in that next instant.

"A daughter?!" Strident laughter followed, loud enough to cause most ears to bleed. "I knew that girl was worthless! I must say, lord Sesshoumaru, of all the ways to disappoint someone, that girl…"

Loud crashes followed, and that shrill laughter became a moan of pain. Sesshoumaru hardly seemed to have moved, but his eyes flashed with cruel joy. "I find you grating."

Jaken held his head in his anguish, sniffling lightly. "Just because I can't bear your children, you must treat me like this…"

That was the very last straw. The youkai narrowed his eyes as a red glint flashed from their depths. In that very next second, Jaken found himself flying over an entire forest—leaving behind a gaping hole in the wall. And as Sesshoumaru stared at it, a slight grin flickering on his thin lips, that same wall began to mend itself. The midwife beside him shivered, looking towards her master with a degree of fear.

"Was…that really necessary, my lord?"

"Yes."

But his cruel joy was short-lived. He felt another presence, far too close for comfort. A powerful presence, laced with acrimony. Sesshoumaru turned towards the birthing room, a sudden suspicion in his eyes. "Miyu, is Rin alone in there now?"

The young woman gave him a nervous nod, quickly hiding her shaking in a deep bow. "Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama. It's just her and her baby now."

Her response was adequate. Even so, he couldn't help but feel…disturbed. It wasn't an emotion he normally felt. He knew that someone was looking in on his child, with more than curiosity. There was a sinister, unsatisfied hunger about that presence. Sesshoumaru reached forward, then thrust open the door with incomprehensible speed. The midwife became frantic, shouting something about defiling the sacred room…

He didn't care.

Unfortunately, the presence was gone. The youkai could only glimpse the blur of white fur from the now open window—the same thing he had glimpsed that dark night, nine years before.

From beside his unconscious mate, he could hear his child's angelic cry. She too, had felt the unsettling aura. By now, he heard more of his servants rushing to witness the disturbance for themselves. However, as little as he cared about them, he felt a sudden twinge of a new emotion: dread. He turned towards them with cold eyes, his claw curling into a tight fist as he hid it behind his back.

"See to it Saiyuri is guarded," he ordered, coolly. "Do not let her mother leave her side."

His confused servants bowed frantically, all of them clearly unsure how to take the situation. Without delay, each ran off to make adequate preparations. The lord was left to absorb his newfound…hostility towards the thing that thought to harm his child.

He didn't understand it.

Nor did he want to.

Even if this thing, this intruder, had once been a part of his family, that was no more. Sesshoumaru wanted him dead.

But unknown to him, as Rikuse rushed back into the slowly coming dawn, he had a thought that was far too similar.

_Let it be known to the world that I can offset fate. My cousin will die by my hand._

* * *

**A/N: Maistwin wrote this chapter. Her writing is so much better than mine. And, please, review. She's threatened my life if she doesn't get at least three reviews. Please, I want to live. (She'd never kill me though, she doesn't have the password to this account, so my death would mean the end of this story)**

**Uhh... the site has been updated (Www. Feewebs. Com/unknownlives). Go check it out. Fan art has been added.  
**


	17. Kidnapped

**Four Years since Sayuri's Birth**

"_In the brightest hour, of my darkest day  
I realized what is wrong with me  
Can't get over you, cant get through to you  
Its been a helter skelter romance from the start  
Take these memories that are haunting me  
Of a paper man cut into shreds by his own pair of scissors  
He'll never forgive her  
He'll never forgive her  
Because days come and go  
But my feelings for you are forever"_

-Papa Roach; "Forever"

* * *

_Finally! _

Shippo was beaming with pride as he walked down the trail he'd dreamt about coming down for so long. He'd be home with the others, he'd be strong enough to stand up for himself, and InuYasha wouldn't ever beat on him again! He was a yokai - a strong, independent yokai. He wouldn't have to hide behind anyone when danger came his way and he wouldn't have to accept constant abuse for his remarks! Life was good. He was a certified, trained kitsune. He knew what to do.

And, on top of that, it had been long past five years from the day Kagome had left! She'd be back now! Yeah, she'd be a little older than the last time he saw her, but she'd still be there. It almost felt as if his parents had come back to life and he was about to see his mother again. And, in a way, he was about to see his mother again. Kagome had been a mother to him in more ways than one. She'd taken care of him when he had no where else to turn to. And now, finally, he'd be able to repay the debt he owed her by protecting her. Nothing could possibly go wrong, right?

A small gust of wind blew past him then, sending scents his way.

A grin of mischief passed over the kitsune's face.

_InuYasha..._

This was the time for payback after all those years of unneeded torture and punishment. He was sure that he was just a little bit taller, or just as tall as InuYasha by now, so they were on even ground. Eagerness was coursing through his veins. Today was sure to be the best day of his life.

"So... You're finally back, huh?"

InuYasha's voice sounded just as Shippo entered the clearing where the Goshinboku stood tall, it's shade resting over both of them.

"Yeah, I'm back!" Shippo didn't notice the somber mood of the hanyo or the area as he spoke, "And you're in for a world of payback."

The hanyo didn't reply immediately, but after that moment of pause his mood was obvious to the kitsune.

"I'm not in the mood to play with you Shippo. Not here. Not now."

"Are you afraid Kagome's going to 'sit' you?" Shippo asked mockingly, ignoring the somberness of the hanyo now that he was aware of it.

InuYasha twitched then, his hand visibly going up to clutch at his necklace. He was shaking slightly, whether it be from sadness or anger, as he turned for the first time to face Shippo.

"Kagome can't sit me any more," his face was drawn with a sort of regret that confused the kitsune, "She can't do anything anymore."

"What do you mean?" Shippo began to worry, "You're still wearing the necklace."

"Kagome..." InuYasha turned his face away from Shippo then, his fist around his necklace shaking, "Kagome is dead."

Shippo froze.

"You... can't be serious."

Time stopped. All thinking came to a halt. Everything seemed suspended in the air as the words took effect in Shippo's mind, reality settling in with unwanted pain. And it was only then that Shippo realized how much older InuYasha looked, and how the once golden and vibrant eyes had dulled. There was still life there, but whatever had been there in the travels he had shared with the hanyo were gone. The shining silver hair had streaks of dull gray in it, and the hanyo's young face looked slightly worn. He wasn't old, Shippo knew it would be impossible for the hanyo to already be withering away, but time had taken its toll. All the tragedies were showing on InuYasha's now adult face, surfacing from the once young features. Sadness, pain, and regret had taken a great toll.

Shippo fell to his knees, tears he hadn't realized were falling hitting the ground.

Kagome was gone. She was gone and she was never going to come back. He couldn't do anything about it.

"How... how did she die?"

A new voice came with a response, "We don't talk about it."

Shippo took a look up then to see who had spoken to him, his eyes meeting with a blinding pink color. She was young, not much younger than him, and her face was shining with a happiness he had only seen on Kagome. It almost enthralled him, it almost made him swoon. But the dog ears on the top of her head pulled him back to reality, many questions running through his mind.

She stretched her arms up towards the sky, yawning.

"Did you just wake up?" InuYasha asked, a slight tone of annoyance obvious in his tone.

"Yeah," she let her arms drop back down as her yawn disappeared, "I didn't feel like getting up any earlier."

"When the hell did you get so lazy? I was never like that."

"That's you." The young girl said matter-of-factly, turning her attention to Shippo, "And I'm guess you're Shippo? The little... well, not so little kit my Mom took care of?"

Shippo's eyes were wide, "Kagome... was your mom."

"Uh-huh." She said with a smile, "My name is Koyasha. Nice to finally meet you."

He nodded awkwardly, turning his attention back towards InuYasha. The hanyo really had a lot of explaining to do...

* * *

Amaya walked into her house, tossing the scroll back and forth between her hands. She'd done another day of slaying an Oni in a nearby village, the scroll taken as payment from his body. She had no idea what it actually was, and didn't really care what it said, the only real reason she had taken it was because of the Crescent moon on it and InuYasha's name scrawled on it as the recipient. So, with a lack of respect for the hanyo's privacy, she cracked open the worn, poorly redone seal and unrolled it, reading it's contents with dull curiosity.

_Your niece has been born, baby brother. This Sesshomaru has no care whether or not you decide to defile my family's House by coming for a much unneeded visit, but Rin insists I "invite" you. _

_Lord Sesshomaru_

So this was a message from the great and mighty Sesshomaru? Amaya could only hold back her laughter. The only reason the Oni could have possibly gotten this was because he probably killed the messenger and took the news as an advantage to kidnap the child. But, apparently, he had gotten lost on his way to the Castle and stumbled beneath her blade.

Life's a bitch.

So, not bothering to try and hide the evidence that she'd read InuYasha's scroll, she walked right back out the door, heading off to find the hanyo she loved to annoy. But she didn't even have to enter the forest when she saw the group of three enter the small clearing in front of the house, a great smile upon her face as she caught sight of InuYasha.

"Hey! InuYasha!" she purposely spoke with a tone that she knew would annoy him, "Guess what I found!"

InuYasha just growled in response as he watched her wave some sort of scroll above her head, his already short temper shrinking. She was twenty-something, so shouldn't she be done with this childish annoying-him-on-purpose shit?

"I don't care."

"It's from Sesshomaru!"

He paused. What the hell would she find that was from Sesshomaru?

"What the hell is it, then?" he asked gruffly as he came to stand in front of her, his daughter peeking around him to see what was going on.

"It's a letter," Amaya said, handing it over, "I found it on a demon I killed today. It looks like it's a couple years old. The messenger probably got killed on his way to give it to you."

"What the hell..." the hanyo muttered, opening the scroll without care.

He read over it for a minute, but he was soon laughing as he tossed the scroll over his shoulder.

"He had to _invite _me 'cause that little girl said so?" he didn't notice that Koyasha had retrieved the scroll, "He's totally whipped!"

"...Can I go, Daddy?"

"If you want," InuYasha said, "I don't care. Just don't be surprised if you get turned away at the gates."

"Ok!" Koyasha was beaming at that, "I'll leave..."

"Right now would probably be the best time," InuYasha commented, cutting off his daughter, "I'll see you later. Just head West, you'll run into it eventually."

"'Kay!"

Koyasha was gone in a burst of wind then, rivaling Koga's speed.

"'_Just head West and you'll run into eventually'_?" Shippo asked, "What type of parent are you?"

"Oh shut up."

* * *

_Oh god. Not again._

Maybe she should run.

_No, he'd catch me._

Maybe she should hide.

_Nah, he'd find me._

Maybe she should fight.

_Hah! Yeah, right._

She sighed. She'd live through it one way or another.

"Koyasha!" his voice was loud and booming as he called her name, a small groan emitting from her.

She really didn't want to deal with him.

"Hello, Koga." Her voice was less than excited, "Nice to see you again."

He skidded to a stop in front of her, his face painted with his signature cocky grin.

"Hello, my woman."

"You do realize my Father is going to kill you one day." She said with a roll of her eyes as he clasped both of his hands around hers.

"He hasn't been able to yet." Koga almost seemed like he was gloating – which he probably was, "And I'm not afraid of that hanyo mutt."

"You call him a mutt but I'm not even hanyo."

"Uhh..." she'd caught him of guard with her comment, "I don't mean anything by it."

"Right." She said with her usual hint of sarcasm, "And my answer is still the same as it was before, Koga. No, I'm not going to be your mate. And, no, I'm going up to the mountains."

"You'll change your mind one day," he said with that same stupid smile.

"No I won't."

She guessed he probably translated that into: _Yes, Koga. One day you'll sweep me off my feet and I willing give myself to you! I'm just waiting to rise out of my stupidity and see how much I really do love you! _

"You'll see – one day you'll be mine!"

"Yes, just like the way my mother so deeply loved you and wanted to run away with you to the mountains," Koyasha said with cruel sarcasm, pulling her hands out of his, "Now, please Koga, I'm on my way to somewhere."

"Where?" he asked, brushing any hurt from the comment off, "I'll go with you."

She sighed, "I doubt Sesshomaru wouldn't appreciate you showing up without an invitation."

"Then at least let me take you there, 'cause you're seriously off course if you're trying to head there from here."

Koyasha knew she couldn't refuse his offer at this point. If she was seriously off course - which she usually was with her bad sense of direction that her Father so often made fun of - there wasn't a hope in heaven that she'd find her way on her own.

"Fine." She said, being automatically swept up into his arms, "But just to the Castle, and that is it."

And then they were off, Koyasha hoping this wouldn't send some type of not wanted message to Koga, since he often mistook one thing for something that meant the exact opposite.

* * *

Sayuri clung to her father's kimono shirt as he held her, her large golden eyes filled with a type of shyness. They stood at an open window as her father watched the wolf demon set down his niece, leaving her at the gates of the Castle they resided in. With his acute eyesight he could see she held the scroll he had sent out to his brother roughly four years ago on the day of his daughter's birth, his eyes narrowing slightly. Half of him had hoped that the messenger had been killed, which was highly likely since the yokai never did come back, and that his relatives wouldn't come. But, of course, he had no such luck. It may have taken them four years, but one of them had still come.

_At least it's not InuYasha, though his daughter isn't any more bearable than he._

Sayuri made a small noise as she too watched the pink haired girl enter the gates, her hands clinging tighter to her father's clothing.

"Father...?" she asked quietly, "Who's she?"

"Your cousin." His answer was dry as he set her down on the wooden floors, "Now go find your mother."

The girl set off immediately, her sliver hair flying behind her as she obediently ran off to find her mother.

Sayuri had grown to be a very shy girl, but she was very strong for a hanyo. She would be a heart stealer when she grew up as well, no doubt, with both of her parents genes. The young girl had started speaking in the first half of her first year, and after that she had proven to be very intelligent. Usually, when she was alone with her mother, they would be found doing a puzzle of some sort, Rin not caring what humiliation went her way when her four year old daughter beat her. Sesshomaru spent most of his time on his own, but when he was found with him child, it was obvious how much the young child adored him. His love, in turn, was shown, but not in an obvious way. Whenever she asked for something, no matter how big or how small it was, Sesshomaru would bring it to her. On occasion the taiyokai even let the child play with Tenseiga, if she asked, since there was no fear of her hurting herself with it. But Sayuri had her boundaries. When a rule was set, if she tried to fight it, she was always humbled in some way or another. Consequently, the young girl was very obedient.

The servant stumbled into the hallway then, panting slightly, "Sesshomaru-sama, there is a girl at–"

"Let her in." he wasn't in the mood to listen to his servants voices as he cut him off, not caring when the man quickly departed to let Koyasha inside the castle.

--

"Hey, Oji-sama!" Koyasha said, unaware of the sudden gasps from the guards and servants around her at the level of respect she _wasn't_ giving Sesshomaru, "Long time no see!"

"In any other circumstance, you would find yourself in pain. But since your hair reminds me of the small, helpless baby pig you seem to represent, I will pity you this once."

Koyasha, much like her father, didn't fully understand how badly been verbally burned, and let it fly over her head like the air head she tended to be.

"Whatever, Oji-sama," If Koyasha would have been any other person, she would have been headless by this point.

Sesshomaru, who was currently resisting the urge to kill the young girl in front of him, responded with the same cold indifference he always had.

"What is your business here?"

She held up the scroll and handed it over to him, "You sent it. InuYasha was too lazy to come, so I came instead."

Sesshomaru recognized the scroll immediately, "Has it taken you four years to find this Castle, or are you just that incredibly dense?"

"Nah. Amaya found it on some demon recently and gave it to InuYasha. She said something about a messenger probably being intercepted." Koyasha explained with a shrug, "But whatever. I wanna meet my cousin. Where is she?"

Sesshomaru gave a mental sigh. His brother had not raised his child to be intelligent as it seemed, and this girl may prove to eat away at his patience faster than anyone else had ever dared.

But before the taiyokai could open his mouth to further warn his niece that pressing his patience and throwing all respect to the wind would not be in her best interests if she wished to live, Rin entered the scene.

"Koyasha!" the raven haired beauty was accompanied by the young hanyo child that was nearly hidden behind the layers of her mother's kimono, "It's so nice to see you!"

Koyasha turned away from her uncle immediately, walking over to the girl she recognized from her childhood.

"Rin! You're older!" Much like her father, Koyasha was a master at pointing out the obvious, "It's been a long time since I saw you last!"

"Why are you here, Koyasha? Did your father come along as well?"

"Fortunately, the hanyo decided not to disgrace the castle grounds with his presence." Sesshomaru answered, turning to face the women.

"Oh, couldn't you be nicer to InuYasha, Sesshomaru-sama?" Rin said in an almost scolding way, "He is your brother after all."

"Hn."

"Well, anyways," Koyasha continued on when Sesshomaru didn't make any further sounds, "I came here to see this cousin of mine."

"Oh, Sayuri?" Rin's eyes seemed to light up as she twisted her torso around to peek over at the child that was hiding behind her, "Come on dear, she's not going to eat you."

But the child didn't come out of her hiding spot, making her mother move to pick her up in her arms. Sayuri automatically hid her face in her mother's shoulder.

"She's shy." Rin said with a sigh, trying to get her daughter to meet Koyasha to only fail.

"It's ok." Koyasha wasn't bothered by the shyness, "I don't mind really. I remember not wanting to see anyone my mother had me meet... but that was partially 'cause always made me wear that dumb hat to hide my ears."

Rin smiled half heartedly, still trying to get her daughter out of hiding.

"C'mon, Sayuri, she's not going to hurt you or anything. She's your cousin."

But when Sayuri continued to refuse to pull her face away from her mother's shoulder, Koyasha took things into her own hands. With strong, welcome arms she got Rin to transfer over the girl into her own hold, finally managing to get a peek at her cousin before the young one started fussing.

"Sayuri, why are you so shy?" Koyasha asked with a smile as she kept the child in her arms, "I'm a part of your family you know. My dad is your dad's brother."

Sayuri stopped struggling, turning her golden eyes up to her cousin, "...Really?"

"Yeah. They don't get along very well, but they're still brothers."

Sayuri processed the information before asking her next question, "You have a brother too, don't you?"

Koyasha felt like cringing away from the question, the memory of the large silver dog appearing in her minds eye.

_Rikuse..._

"Yes, I have a brother. He's my twin." Koyasha's usually happy eyes were clouded with a bit of sadness, "But I haven't seen him in a long time. His name is Rikuse."

Sayuri suddenly seemed very withdrawn at learning her other cousin's name, "Let's not talk about him anymore. I see him enough in my nightmares."

Everyone related to the young girl froze at hearing the young girl's words.

"What do you mean Sayuri?" Sesshomaru's voice was crisp and indifferent as ever, but there was a tone of worry hidden underneath it all, "How has a boy you've never met come to be in your nightmares? How did you come across his name?"

"He told his name."

"You've seen Rikuse?" Koyasha asked quickly, all her senses heightened with the mention that her brother had seen the child.

"No. He told in my nightmares."

Sesshomaru quickly transferred his daughter into his own arms, leaving Koyasha slightly shocked.

"What did he do in your nightmares?"

She seemed scared when her father asked the question, but answered him despite it.

"...He killed me."

The flurry of orders Sesshomaru shouted out next and the sudden movements that followed made Koyasha's mind spin, consequently robbing her of any detailed memory of the happenings. All she knew was that her uncle proceeded to shove both herself and the mother and daughter into a room soon after his orders were finished, instructing them to stay inside the castle walls at all times. The only thing she could remembering him saying to the people of the castle was to double the guard on his daughter, but otherwise, her memory was a blur.

* * *

Rikuse glanced up at the sky, watching the sun sink behind the mountains. The half moon was already high in the sky, but he wouldn't turn until the last ray of light disappeared. And this was probably the only night in his entire lifetime that he had ever looked forward to this transformation.

"We leave tonight." He stated, leaning up against the tree with Sesshomaru-like indifference.

Kazu's whine was unavoidable, "Whhhhyyyy?"

Rikuse ignored the child, despite the fact that the whine ground at the insides of his skull.

"Do not complain. You have not a choice in this matter."

"But Rikuse—"

"Silence yourself." He commanded out of annoyance, jumping up into the branches of the tree he was leaning up against gracefully.

He made his way to the top of the tree quickly, finding his spot so that he could look over the mass of treetops and towards the magnificent castle that belonged to his uncle. With the sun slowly disappearing and the darkness taking over he could feel his senses growing stronger and his muscles contracting uneasily, the slow and slightly painful change coming over him as the moon became the only source of light. And in a split second everything around him seemed louder and more alive, every sound of the forest that was quickly falling asleep heard by his sensitive ears.

He was demon once more.

Sayuri would die this night.

* * *

Koyasha was pissed. She had completely spaced the fact that she turned human tonight, and now she felt completely miserable. Not only did she come down with a bad fever the moment she had transformed, but yokai medicines usually didn't work on humans. So all she could do was follow what little she remembered from her mother taking care of her when she was sick and allow Rin to try and help her. Eventually, she'd been able to nap, but when Sesshomaru had come into the room and woken her, her inherited short temper met its end.

"Get out, you bastard!" Her voice was a low growl despite her humanity, "Let me sleep!"

Grabbing the nearest vase with her hands, she chucked it at Sesshomaru's head, only to see that her attempts were futile when he caught it midair. So, she grabbed the two nearest things, which happened to be a hairbrush and another piece of decorative pottery and threw it his way, hoping at least one of them would hit. The brush ended up falling short and he caught the second vase, setting both items that had been thrown at him down on a nearby table. In the following seconds Koyasha found herself out of the bed and dangling up in the air by her neck, a cold, unforgiving hand crushing down on her throat.

Of all nights to get in trouble with her proud uncle, she'd picked tonight.

"Put me down!" She managed to choke out, both her hands grasping her uncle's wrist.

"You shall learn not to make an attempt to harm this Sesshomaru, especially in a night where you are weaker than usual, you disgrace." Sesshomaru hissed, giving her neck a small taste of his poison before he dropped her on the ground.

The part demon turned mortal rubbed at the burn marks on her neck, glaring up at her uncle.

"If you are quite done trying to get yourself killed, child, Sayuri has requested that you go see her."

Koyasha's mood hadn't lightened with the sudden assault she'd received, "I can barely stand, let alone walk through this castle!"

"Then this Sesshomaru will throw you down the halls until you reach my daughter's room."

Koyasha wished she could punch him in the face, but knew better than that. So, with a sky high body temperature and shaky legs, she managed to make it to her feet, dreading the walk to the young girl's room. But before she could even attempt to make a step a loud scream echoed through the castle, chilling both her and Sesshomaru to the bone. Sesshomaru was gone in an instant, leaving Koyasha alone again, sick and miserable. As quick as she could, Koyasha stumbled over to her window, throwing the shutters open wide to the night sky. She leaned out over the edge, directing her attention to the right of the castle, knowing Sayuri's room was that way and the window lay the same direction as her own.

She only barely got a glimpse of the white streak that nearly beheaded her as it traveled away, young Sayuri's scream audible from the captor's arms.

In seconds the entire castle had fallen into chaos, but Koyasha was too dazed to care. She made her way out of her room and down the staircases of the castle with speed that was powered purely by her determination, stumbling out onto the front porch of the castle. But by the time she had gotten there, he was gone.

_Rikuse..._

She collapsed then, sliding out of consciousness under the sickness that had been brought upon her, the whole castle slowly falling into uncontrollable madness.

* * *

**A/N: You guys are lucky. You've been getting pretty quick updates... Don't know how long that will last though. All I'm gonna say is review, check out the site if you want to, and enjoy!**


	18. The Newest Recruit

"_Hear what I say  
I'm gonna get out of my mind  
where I'm going to be on your way  
your spirit is crawling after  
Will I disappear?"_

-Lacuna Coil; "What I See"

* * *

Sayuri squealed and squirmed in his unyielding hold, seemingly unaffected by the chill of his eyes. But he would not give in. The treetops were a blur around them, and only the occasional cracking of branches gave him any disturbance at all. Rikuse let her squeal, only because he assumed doing such would eventually tire her. However, this didn't seem the case. Once she raised her voice loud enough to pierce his indifference, screaming her father's name. "My father will spit upon your grave!"

Only then did he meet her gaze—gold meeting gold with cruel intensity. "Your _father_ no longer believes in my existence," he explained, his low tone bringing more tears to her eyes. "You will shut your own mouth, or I will separate you from your tongue. That is your choice."

She looked at him in terror, her lips slowly pressing into a thin line. This satisfied him. He gripped her to his chest again, continuing his swift dash through the treetops. His destination was so close…he could taste the familiar air. Unfortunately, a single entity remained a persistent distraction. He could hear Kazu huffing behind him, longing to catch up.

"Are you sure about this, master?!" he could hear him shout. "She's…she's your cousin, master! And she's so small…"

"Shut up," he snarled. "Just shut up."

The small shack soon came into view, its decrepit, wooden walls moaning a reluctant welcome to him. Here, there would be no one to hear the hanyo's screams. Rikuse wouldn't bother to use a door. He threw himself in through the sorry remains of a window, and soon, he had the young girl thrust against one of oak panels.

This was his chosen slaughterhouse.

He could feel the fragility of his cousin's small neck, even before he put any pressure on it. The girl had already forgotten her promised silence. She began to whimper softly, seemingly against her will, for her gold eyes watched him with cruel hated. The combined emotions would have confused him, if he hadn't been in this form. But now, coupled with the glint of the fading moonlight against her silver hair, the fact only heightened his bloodlust.

"You will not get away with this, Rikuse," she whispered, her small voice trembling with unnatural authority. "Father will kill you."

Her statement meant nothing to him—it was the sound of his name that caused him the slightest hesitation. Even so, his hand tightened around her throat, summoning from her another gasp of pain.

"How you know of me at all is not my concern." He held his other hand up before her eyes, his nails slowly lengthening to sharp, lethal points. "You will never see me again."

Sayuri's eyes grew wide when she saw what he was doing. Her squirming worsened immediately, and her quiet whimpers soon became a screech of terror. Outside, Rikuse could hear Kazu gasp. Yet, it didn't matter to him. He pressed his claws to her stomach, his eyes hardening with indifference when he saw her fear.

"This will only hurt for a moment."

Perhaps, right then, he would have accepted what he had become. As the heat coursed to his poised claws, the girl at their mercy became but an insignificant obstacle in his life. That's all she would have been. But, suddenly, she wasn't the one in pain.

It felt as if a rod had been shoved into his back, the dull pain of it enough to halt his train of thought. He did not shout. His teeth clamped together hard enough to snuff out even the remnant of one.

"Who dares to interrupt a demon's work?" he growled.

Sayuri had gone silent, her eyes watching a new figure in the room. However, even as he turned around, he made nothing of it. That is, until he saw the intruder. A young woman stood poised in the doorway's light, a bloody sword clutched in her pale hands. All it took was a brief glimpse at the armor, tight on her robust form, to know what she was.

_Demon slayer.  
_  
"You're a stupid demon, to ask who's come for you."

The cruel glint in her sapphire eyes was all but infuriating to his demonic mind. There was no allure in her exotic appearance, simply because of what she represented to him. She was an obstacle. Precious, irreclaimable time was ticking away the longer he even had to look at her. He wanted her gone.

His cousin began to squirm once more in his hold, this time choosing to snarl rather than whimper. Her eyes had begun to take on a demonic glint, and her incisors slowly began to lengthen to a point. Unfortunately, he could also feel the girl aiming for him again—fresh blood had begun to leak from his wound as it began to heal. He had a choice. Either he could take care of the slayer, or he deal with Sayuri. Sunrise was coming too quickly to allow both.

However, his thinking process had taken too long as it was. The girl had brandished her sword again. She was coming towards him silently, the cold determination fueling her precise movements. And yet the sun continued to creep up slowly, inching its way towards a horizon. There was no longer a choice. He threw the child against an opposite wall, ignoring her scream as he turned wildly to meet his foe.

Instinct led his every subsequent move. Rikuse saw his own silver hair flash away from him as he grasped her shoulders, gripping her so tightly she had to freeze. Fangs protruded over his lips. In that next moment, he found himself sinking them slowly into her pale neck. Her gasp meant nothing to him. He hadn't thought. He just did.  
New light began to flood the hovel.

He wrenched himself from the slayer, practically thrusting her to the side as he tried to put distance between them. "Kazu!" he bellowed. "Get Sayuri!" Though he could see the young demon unconscious before him, he was in no condition to retrieve her. His own vision was beginning to fade.

Rikuse stumbled backwards, his hand gripping at the wall as he tried to control some of the painful spasms of his transformation. Muscles clenched and tightened, as if resisting the change; even his throat clamped shut, for a moment. Slowly, his nails began to retract, and the fangs in his mouth began to recede to nothing. Even now he could see the slayer girl staring up at him from the floor, her bright eyes set upon him in awe.

At last, his own black hair fell over his eyes as he tried to right his own breath. His chest still rose and fell quickly from the pain of it. The light of day was far dimmer in his new vision. He couldn't see much of anything, for a moment, nor did he want to. It was enough for him to hear Kazu scuttling into the shack, and trying his hardest to drag the young girl to the entryway. But a new voice reminded him of exactly why he was throbbing—of his new problem.

"You're…you're the monk, from town…"

He looked up slowly, though he already knew what he would find. The slayer stared up at him in shock, seemingly unaware of the blood that now slowly dripped down her neck.

"But…how…is that possible…?"

Rikuse had no response for her. He stared her down with the same disinterest he had before, not because that was truly how he felt, but because there was no other way for him to address the situation. Even so, her bewilderment lasted for only a moment. She snatched her sword from the ground, holding it aimed menacingly towards him.

"You'll never travel these parts again!" she whispered harshly, her eyes cold as ice. "People will hear of this. You conned my entire village! You...you monster!"  
_  
Monster..._

As much as he despised her for that single word, he couldn't let her leave. The slayer had seen his transformation. For all the years he had been living like this, this girl was the first. He soon narrowed his eyes towards her, slowly reaching out and grabbing the very point of the sword. "I'm sorry for what you have witnessed," he said lowly. "But I'm afraid no one will hear of your tale."

"Master Rikuse!" Kazu soon bounded up behind him, a frantic look on his young face. "There are more slayers coming! We have to leave now!"

Any hatred he had retained for the girl suddenly grew exponentially. "You brought your people?!" he whispered, his voice harsh. The girl narrowed her eyes, but her lips curled in a devilish smile.

"You can't win, shape-shifter. When my clan gets here, you'll have no escape."

She had no idea just how wrong she was. This slayer couldn't possibly comprehend who she was dealing with. As his own smile grew, it was as cruel as it was knowing. He wrenched her sword from her grip, and slipped behind her with unheard of speed. Before she could have known what was happening, he had wrapped an arm tightly around her waist, and the other sharply bound her torso. "That's what you think," he whispered.

Kazu looked at him helplessly from the doorway, but swiftly disappeared the moment the hunters drew too close. Rikuse understood that the kitsune had already hidden his cousin; in that respect, he had nothing to worry about. Soon, the slayers flooded into entire area around the hovel, a few even brave enough to break through the front walls. But when they saw what was before them…they froze. Not a demon, but young monk held one of their slayers immobile, as blood dripped from her neck.

"H-houshi-sama…" A young man stepped forward, slowly dropping his weapon as he stared at them in awe. "W-what are you doing to Yuuki-san?"

Yuuki. He noted the name swiftly, but his hold on her only grew tighter. By now, he knew that the girl could not speak. The hanyou could hear her trying to choke out words, but his expert grip rendered that entirely impossible. Because of this, his smile was assured.

"I'm sorry, young slayer, " he said. "But this woman has committed a grave sin. I'm afraid she won't be able to come home with you. I'm sorry to have caught her in the act."

An older man stepped up, the streaks of gray in his hair betraying his seasoned background. But though he watched Rikuse with suspicion, the boy felt no anxiety. It was rare for anyone to mistrust the word of a monk. "What is this…sin you speak of?"

He smiled sadly, shaking his head as slowly wiped the blood from Yuuki's neck. The injury revealed itself to be two perfect puncture wounds, bright red against her fair skin.

"She has willingly given blood to a demon. You are fortunate I destroyed the beast before it could convince her to sin any further."

All of the slayers' eyes went wide. None could believe that their comrade was capable of doing such a thing, and yet, to hear such sincere words from a monk…it was impossible to think anything different. The boy stepped forward again, deep pain in his expression.

"Yuuki…"

By now, the girl was gasping for breath. Her eyes were filled with tears of rage—but when she saw the older man grasp the boy's shoulder, they turned to tears of hate. "No, Sasuke," he said darkly. "This monk has witnessed the act. There's nothing more we can do for her."

Slowly, each slayer disappeared from the hunt. And though it almost pained Rikuse to see the girl writhe with such rage, he knew nothing could have been done. He couldn't let her escape now. Her tears fell when the very last slayer spat at her feet, then turned to leave.

"You disgust me," she said, very plainly.

At last, they were alone. Yuuki had fallen into silence, not by choice, but because she had exhausted all of her strength. Only then did Rikuse lean towards her to whisper words of her fate. "You belong to me."

* * *

It was a miracle Koyasha had even gotten back to the village once she had woken up. They had moved her back into her room in the castle, but the moment she had woken up Sesshomaru's yells were enough to tell her that she probably didn't want to stick around as her Uncle slowly went insane. So, being back to normal and her sickness gone, she jumped out the window, inching her way over to the window where she knew Rin was to say a quick goodbye. And when her goodbyes were done and finished, she leapt out of the castle grounds and snuck out of sight in the afternoon sun. She actually had no recollection of how she actually made it back to the village, and since she didn't know where she was going because Koga had taken her to the castle the first time round, it was a miracle that she even went in the right direction. But, eventually, she found herself bursting through the forest trees to arrive in her Grandma Kaede's village. So, with the knowledge of where she was, she took the short run over to the area where her house, along with Sango's and Miroku's house, finding herself at the doorstep to her home not ten minutes later.

InuYasha had built the house himself not long after her mother had died, stating that he and his daughter needed a place of their own instead of sleeping in a friend's house every night. So, within the time span of four months InuYasha had built the three bedroom house, saying they'd need the extra room when they found Rikuse. Of course, the room remained empty none the less, but it didn't matter.

And when she burst through the door her father didn't even bother to look up from the area where he lounged in the main room, but none the less she managed to skid to a perfect stop in front of him.

"I… I saw Rikuse…" she panted, bending over with her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath.

InuYasha's eyes snapped open as he jumped to his feet, "Where is he?"

"...G-Gone…" she managed to lift her head up to look at her father, "He took… took Sayuri…"

InuYasha's brow furrowed, "Who the fuck is Sayuri?! And what the fuck do you mean he's gone?! Didn't you try and stop him or something?!"

"I was… human… last night…" she paused, taking a deep breath, "He was demon. I didn't even see his face."

"Then how do you know it was even him then?"

"Daddy, he's my twin. I know it was him."

InuYasha sighed, "Whatever. Who the fuck is this Sayuri?"

Koyasha laughed without humor, "She's your niece. Oji-san's kid. Rikuse kidnapped her."

InuYasha looked a bit stunned for a moment, then chuckled darkly.

"So he wants me to help him, huh?"

"I dunno. I didn't stick around to ask. He was going insane from what I could hear, so I just bailed." Koyasha explained, her breath returned to her, "But yeah, I think you should help! I mean, she's with Rikuse! If we find her, we'll find him too."

"…I guess we'll go then." InuYasha decided, "I'll round up anyone who wants to go. You should probably drop by your Grandmother's and get whatever you want. Like clothes and shit. Unless, of course, you wanna wear a kimono instead and eat what we can catch."

"Screw kimonos!" Koyasha said with a smile, "I'll be back by night fall. Anything you want? A coke? Ramen?"

"Ramen," InuYasha said with a smirk, "Lots of ramen."

Koyasha turned, heading towards the door, "Ok!"

And then she was gone.

InuYasha sighed, sitting back down and leaning up against the wall.

_Rikuse…_

His son… He hadn't thought of Rikuse in such a long time. But now Koyasha had seen him. Rikuse had actually survived out there on his own. It had always been a fear that he wouldn't have been able to find Rikuse in time and some other demon had gotten a hold of him first. But apparently, his son had made it through. It made a part of him feel comforted almost, but he knew that shouldn't really be any sort of comfort. His son was still out there, alone, and out of his reach. He couldn't protect him… he couldn't fight for him… he couldn't stop him from doing _stupid shit_ like _kidnapping_ his _cousin_!

_Why the hell would he kidnap Sesshomaru's kid anyways? He was raised by the fucker! He knows he'll just end up dead!_

InuYasha sighed, massaging his temples. His son had turned into some kind of criminal and had gotten himself on Sesshomaru's black list. Not the best way to come back into the family… Considering that Rikuse would even come back to the family.

InuYasha sighed again, dropping his hand from his face and scratching behind his ears.

_Kagome would know what to do…_

He closed his eyes then, his head falling back to lean against the wall. Kagome. God, he missed her. They all missed her. If she was here he'd be fine with her in his arms, their children doing whatever they would have done if she had survived. He knew Rikuse blamed himself for Kagome's death, and that was a fact that constantly ate at InuYasha. Rikuse hadn't been the reason. Koyasha hadn't been the reason. He hadn't been the reason. The fucking bitch Misako had been the reason.

_Kagome… _he prayed to her silently, asking for any help she could give him. The days of mourning her had passed even though the grief hadn't left him, and now he just waited until the day he would join her. Yes, he still cried. And even now Koyasha sometimes crawled into bed with him in the middle of the night because she missed her mother after a nightmare.

But he'd find Rikuse if that was the last thing he did. He owed that to Kagome.

He stood silently, leaving the house without another thought regarding the fallen miko. He quietly make his way over to the entrance of Sango's and Miroku's house, carefully avoiding any areas where the teenagers might be lurking, ready to pounce on him like they usually did. Entering without announcing his presence, he walked in on the couple making out in the main room, the situation quickly getting heated.

"After seven kids you think you two would be done by now." InuYasha bluntly commented, abruptly stopping their heated exchanges, "It's a miracle Sango hasn't popped out another one yet."

"Oh, InuYasha," Miroku said, quickly gathering his bearings and standing, "You do realize it is common courtesy to announce your presence before you enter another man's house."

InuYasha stared at the monk, "And?"

"You should know by now that InuYasha thinks himself above manners, Miroku," Sango commented as she too gathered her bearings, "Or he's just too much of an animal to use them."

"Yeah, whatever Sango," InuYasha said dryly, brushing the comment off his shoulder, "I came here to see if one of you wanted to go on another little journey with me and Koyasha."

"What type of journey do you speak of, InuYasha?" Miroku asked, interested.

"She saw Rikuse."

"Is she sure about it?" Miroku asked calmly, "And where'd she see him?"

"She bets her life on it," InuYasha paused before answering the second question, "And she saw him when she was at Sesshomaru's… as he kidnapped my niece."

"…Rikuse kidnapped your niece?"

"Apparently. But I've never seen Koyasha act more serious about anything in her life."

"Well, if Koyasha really believes it, I'd bet it's true." Sango commented, standing behind Miroku as he sat down, InuYasha following suit.

"Sango's right," Miroku commented, "If Koyasha is sure about it, I don't have many doubts."

"Well, I've gotta go down to Sesshomaru's place so he doesn't end up destroying everything once Koyasha gets back. Any of you guys want to tag along?"

"Well, Amaya went out again, so she's not around," Sango began, "And all the others would be too much of a pain to bring around Sesshomaru. I'd rather them stay alive."

"…I'll go." Miroku said, "I mean, all the kids are teenagers now. I think they'd be easy enough to hold down if it was just you Sango, right?"

Sango laughed, "That's what you think. But sure, I can hold down the fort. Amaya will be back soon enough if I need anything. You go. Get out of the house."

InuYasha stood, "I'll see you later then. I'm going to go find Shippo. Do you know where he's at?"

"Last time I saw he was with the boys."

InuYasha groaned, but turned and left. He hated those brats.

--

After dodging all attacks the twin boys sent after him when he went to find Shippo, the hanyo managed to find the kitsune, who enthusiastically agreed to join in on their little journey. InuYasha made himself scarce after that, knowing that if he stayed out in the open the kids would come after him again, like they always did.

So he soon found himself lounging on one of the many large branches of the Goshinboku, hidden from sight behind all the leaves. He rested there for a while like he usually did, digging into his memories or wondering about the future. And as the sun crept down in the sky he found himself remembering Kagome, whose grave was only feet below him, the pain in his memories all too evident. But he had learned to live with the pain and be left with the memories of her. Even now with her life gone from this world, he couldn't remove his beads. And for some reason he found himself happy with that. Koyasha, of course, had the annoying ability to plunge him face first into the ground with the same word if she was pissed enough, but he doubted that had anything to do with the beads.

So when the sun set on the horizon and his child jumped out from the well, he was there to greet her, an all too familiar large yellow bag strapped to her back. They made their way down to the village after that, rounding up Miroku and Shippo, saying their goodbyes before they left. They traveled throughout the night, resting in the early hours of dawn in a small clearing beside the road.

"You know," Miroku said, yawning from the nap he had just woken from, "The chance that we actually find Rikuse is slim. He's evaded us for a long time, so I doubt we'll find him if he truly doesn't want to be found."

"I know," Koyasha responded from her spot across from him, "But we've gotta try. And now that he's got my cousin Oji-san is going to send out militaries to find him. We have a better chance than ever before of finding him."

"That is true…"

After a moment, InuYasha spoke up from his spot up in the tree Koyasha leaned against.

"Hey, Koyasha, this is the way to Sesshomaru's place, right? I haven't been there in forever."

Koyasha giggled, "You don't know?"

"I'm not sure."

"Well I don't know either."

"What the hell do you mean 'I don't know'?!" InuYasha asked angrily, jumping down from the tree branch to stand in front of his sitting daughter, "You were just there!"

"Koga took me."

InuYasha's vein visibly popped out of his head, "What the hell do you mean?! That mangy wolf has been around you again?! I'll kill him!"

"Daddy," Koyasha pleaded, giggling, "Daddy, calm down. He ran into me and when I told him where I was going he said he'd take me because I was way off track."

"You're the one who told her to 'just head west,' InuYasha." Shippo pointed out.

"Shut up, you damn kitsune!"

"You haven't changed at all when it comes to traveling and directions, InuYasha." Miroku stated.

"What the hell did you say, Monk?!" InuYasha demanded angrily, rounding on the priest.

Miroku held his hands up in front of him, smiling nervously, "I said nothing, InuYasha."

"Damn right you didn't!" the hanyo turned back to his daughter, "If you didn't get yourself there, how the hell did you get back to the house yesterday?!"

"Luck, I guess." Koyasha shrugged, "I actually ended up on the outskirts of Kaede's village the first time round before I ended up at home."

"Koyasha has inherited Kagome's sense of direction, InuYasha. That's nothing to be angry about." Miroku said yet again, most likely digging himself a deeper grave.

Before InuYasha could say something, another member entered the group, wide eyed and confused. The newest member of this little group couldn't have picked a worse time to stumble in of course, since he was the next target for InuYasha's misdirected rage.

"Uhhh…" the little green toad squeaked out, aware that he was most likely in peril danger. Yet, before he could ask what question he intended to ask, InuYasha rounded on him.

"What the hell do you want, toad?! Did Sesshomaru send you to get me?!"

The toad was ready to piss his pants now, unsure of what he had done. He'd been wandering aimlessly for the past four years, having awoken one day with a large bump on his head and no memory of where he was or who he was, and this was the first contact with anyone since that day. Apparently, he'd stumbled in on the wrong group to ask if they knew the directions to where he lived, and he was sure his life would end today.

"WELL?!" the hanyo yelled, his golden eyes burning with fires, "What the hell do you want, toad?"

"InuYasha, please," Miroku said, turning towards the scared demon, "Jaken, has Sesshomaru sent you to find us?"

Suddenly, it felt as if heaven had given the old toad a break. They knew who he was!

"You know who I am, oh honorable monk?!"

The monk and hanyo shared confused looks before Miroku spoke to Jaken again.

"Of course I know who you are. You are the ward of Sesshomaru, unless I have mistaken you for someone else."

"Who is this Sesshomaru?" Jaken asked, clutching onto the strange staff with two heads he had in his possession since the day he found himself without memory, "Do you know of my past?"

Without warning InuYasha grabbed the toad by his collar, sniffing at him.

"It's Jaken alright," he announced to Miroku before addressing the toad himself, "So you're telling me you don't remember who Sesshomaru is, or your own past."

"He's got amnesia!" Koyasha stated, "He's lost all his memory because of a physical accident or a traumatizing emotional event!"

InuYasha shrugged, snatching the staff away from the toad, "If Sesshomaru got rid of you, I've got no use for you."

With a single fluid movement InuYasha chucked the demon away, much like he would throw Shippo in earlier days, focusing all his anger in his throw.

"That was kind of cruel, Daddy." Koyasha said, "He doesn't even know who he is and you treat him like nothing."

"He_ is_ nothing," InuYasha assured, "If you know him the way that I do, you would have done the same thing."

* * *

Sesshomaru stared out the same window he had stood by with his daughter only days before, his eyes a million miles off. It was a rare moment since his daughter's kidnapping that he was alone and silent, returned to his normal state of passive indifference.

Warm hands slid up his back then, resting on his shoulders as a warm body leaned up against him.

"Koyasha left." Rin whispered quietly, massaging his shoulders gently.

"I am well aware." Sesshomaru said quietly, finding that keeping his calm composure was harder than it had ever been.

"She said she was going to go get InuYasha-san and start working."

Sesshomaru closed his eyes, feeling the frustration harder to repress than ever before, "My idiot of a younger brother has no place searching for my daughter. It was his son who dared to kidnap her."

"Sesshomaru-sama," she sighed, resting her cheek against his back, "We'll find Sayuri. I know we will."

"Before or after that boy decapitates her?" Sesshomaru demanded, spinning around and glaring down at Rin with a cold cruelty she had never experienced before, "Or would you love our daughter even without a head? You naive child!"

Sesshomaru walked out of the area in a graceful anger, out of sight even before Rin could gather up what had just happened to her. Eventually the young woman managed to get herself together and she straightened herself up, leaning against the windowsill. With sad brown eyes she stared out at the scenery, massaging her temples with one of her hands.

_She's my daughter too, Sesshomaru-sama…_

She sighed quietly, knowing that Sesshomaru wasn't used to disorders like this. His daughter, one of the few people he truly did love, was in danger. And this time around, he couldn't do a single thing to protect her. It didn't make it any better that the very boy that she had raised was the one that had kidnapped Sayuri. Sesshomaru didn't trust easily, let alone allow someone to be within a foot of him for more than five minutes. So when someone betrayed whatever type of trust he had given them, he was infuriated.

All in all, things were out of his control.

Sesshomaru was a man who needed to have control to function.

* * *

**A/N: There you go. An appearance of yet another OC and the fate of poor little Sayuri. Have fun reviewing!**

**On another note, i would be very appreciative if you READ this part of the author's note. Me and Maistwin have been trying very dearly to create fan art of our own - but frankly, we suck. So, we devised this little plan. If any of you have drawing talents, we would love for you to submit an artwork by sending it to our email (maistwin(at)gmail. com). But your hard work can not go unrewarded of course, so we devised this:**

**If we receive ONE fanart, we'll update within the month  
**

**If we receive TWO fanarts, we'll update within two weeks**

**If we receive THREE fanarts, we'll update within the week**

**If we receive FOUR updates, we'll update the following day of the fourth submission.**

**This "contest" is for this chapter only, though.**

**Thanks! Read, review, and enjoy!**


	19. Conference

Koyasha grumbled, slowly opening her eyes.

"You know, you're lazy."

She scrunched up her face in annoyance, not wanting to be awake, "I know Daddy. You tell me all the time."

"Of course I do. Maybe one day you'll realize laziness is stupid and annoying."

"Only to you, Daddy." She opened her eyes completely, looking around. Her father was carrying her on his back, walking underneath the moring sun, everyone behind following behind them. Craning her head up to the sky, she spotted the sun directly above her, a small laugh coming from her. She'd slept untill noon again!

"Now get your lazy ass off of me!" He commanded, stopping in his tracks as he dropped her uncerimoniously on her butt, a small groan coming from the part demon, "You're grown. You don't need to be carried anymore."

She grumbled again, slowly bringing herself up to her feet, "If you really believed that you would have just woke me up when you guys decided it was time to get moving."

"Keh. Whatever."

Miroku chuckled as he came to walk beside her, InuYasha leading at the front, "He's a big softy at heart. And you're his little girl. He's just too proud to admit it."

"What the hell was that, monk!?" InuYasha demanded from in front of them, not turning to glare at priest.

"Nothing, InuYasha." Miroku said with a small smile, turning back to Koyasha, "Y'know, he carried your Mother on his back all the time when we traveled together."

"Yeah!" Shippo said, standing on her other side, the staff they had taken from Jaken held in one of his hands, "I sat on his shoulder all the time too."

"You must have been really small if you did that." Koyasha commented.

An unexpected pop sounded through the air then, a small cloud of smoke appearing in the area.

"I was about this small!" Shippo's voice was unusually high pitched as the smoke cleared, revealing a much, much smaller child version of the kitsune.

The adult-turned-child then ran up to InuYasha, jumping up on his back and climbing up to sit on his shoulder, "And I was always sitting right here!"

"Stop it with your stupid fox magic, idiot!" InuYasha demanded, roughly punching the small kit off of his shoulder.

With a loud pop and another cloud of smoke Shippo reappeared back to his normal, much older state as he landed on the ground, moaning as he rubbed at his bottom.

"You're such a bully, InuYasha!" he stated as he sprung back up to his feet.

"And you're a friggen' wimp if you're still using words like 'bully', retard."

Koyasha giggled, turning to Miroku as the kitsune returned to her side, mumbling angrily under his breath.

"Where you guys always like this?"

A small smile appeared on Miroku's face, "Yes, but with the absence of my reoccuring... antics."

Koyasha seemed confused, completely unaware that her question could cause a riot, "What type of antics are you talking about, Miroku?"

"Well..." Miroku's hand began its long untraveled journey of wandering at her words, a small smile on his face.

"You touch my daughter and you are dead, monk!!" InuYasha yelled, catching Koyasha off gaurd as he spun around, an angry warning painted across his features.

Miroku's hands automatically went up in front of him, an awkward smile painted on his face, "For you to think I would do such a thing is appaling, InuYasha! I have seven children with the woman I love!"

"I'm not stupid, monk!" InuYasha said, glaring down the man, "You'd still grab any woman's ass if you got the chance!"

"Those type of antics?!" Koyasha asked, surprised, "But you're a monk!"

"He's a letcher in monk's clothing," Shippo commented, "He was and always will be."

"I'm appaled at the way you people see me!"

"Don't act innocent, Miroku. Me and Shippo have seen you molest enough women to know that you're a letcher. I just don't know how you didn't get the message after Sango slapped you so many times." InuYasha commented, turning back around and beginning to lead the group again, "And look at how many kids you two had. Of course you're still a letcher."

Miroku just blushed, unable to deny such facts as he fell silent.

Shippo laughed quietly, amused with the situation.

"I never realized how much I missed this, you guys," he stated, "It's just really weird without her."

InuYasha's ears fell flat on his head for a second, but they soon perked back up.

"Shippo," Koyasha whispered, "We don't really talk about Mom around Daddy. He has a really... _hard_ time even though its been so long since she died."

"How long has it been?" Shippo whispered back, knowing he still be heard by InuYasha anyways.

"Me and Rikuse were five at the time," she explained a bit sadly, "She died when Daddy was under a spell and me and my brother couldn't really do anything about it even though we were with her at the time. It was the night that Rikuse ran away."

"Wait... so this Rikuse we're searching for is your _brother_?!"

Koyasha stared at him, confused, "Yeah. My twin. Didn't Daddy tell you that we were coming out here to look for him and Oji-san's kid?"

"He just said we had to go look for some guy named Rikuse that had kidnapped Sesshomaru's kid!"

Koyasha giggled, "Well, Daddy has never really been that good at telling people the details of things."

Shippo sighed, "I'll have to agree with you on that..." he paused momentarily before he spoke again, "...Could you tell me how Kagome died?"

"What did I tell you last time?" Koyasha asked with a smirk and a shake of her head, "We don't talk about it. I'll tell you later, alright? Once we can speak privately."

"Alright."

"Anyways, Daddy," Koyasha began, running up to walk next to her father, "Did you figure out which way to get to Oji-san's place."

"No," he looked a bit annoyed, "I was hoping that stupid staff would show us where it was. I've seen the toad use it to lead them places."

"Well, did you try and make it work?"

"How in the hells would I know how to make it work?!"

She sighed with a small laugh, "You have to try and make it work, Daddy!" she turned, starting to walk backwards, "Shippo! Toss me that staff!"

She caught it when it came to her, turning back around to walk correctly. She held it out in front of her, a stupid grin on her face as she tried to make it work.

"Take us to Sesshomaru's palace!" She commanded, recieving a stupid look from her father.

"That's not going to work, Koy-"

His statement was cut short when the heads on the staff opened their eyes, bursting to life. With Koyasha's tight grip an invisible force pulled it up to a height where the girl couldn't reach the ground, the male head letting out a disturbing laugh. InuYasha reached up to grab at his daughter out of the air, but before he could the staff starting flying west, pulled by an invisible force and dragging Koyasha along with it since she refuse to let go. At speeds that made Koyasha's running look like nothing, the staff and child flew off on the path it had set to go to the Western stronghold, the group it had left behind speeding to catch up. Koyasha just began to laugh at her situation, making sure to keep her grip strong.

It only took them a few hours of chasing - or holding on - to reach Sesshomaru's Castle at that speed, the staff uncerimoniously dropping out of the air to have Koyasha land on her butt when they arrived. And when the young girl pulled herself to her feet she watched everyone arrive around her, collapsing on the ground or bending over as they tried to catch their breath. She just stood there massaging her hand, the muscles beginning to cramp, but otherwise rested. She didn't dare make any comments towards them, despite the strong urge to make fun of her father as she waited for them to be ready. And, eventually, they were all standing, facing the castle. But before any of them could make the first step to advance towards the castle a young raven haired girl ran out of the castle gates, waving at them as she traveled their way. They all met her at the halway point between them, the young woman looking a little distressed.

"Thank the heavens you guys got here," she said with a smile, "Sesshomaru-sama is going..." she paused, "Well... he's..."

"Going insane?" Koyasha offered.

"Yes. Very much so. And I have no idea what to do. No one does."

"And you think we'll be able to calm him down, eh?" InuYasha asked, "Fat chance of that."

"InuYasha-sama! Please, you must try." she pleaded.

"Rin, he'll try his best," Koyasha assured, "And if he can't calm him down, we'll go find Sayuri and Rikuse."

"What was that?" InuYasha asked, "_I'll _calm him down?"

"Miroku-sama doesn't stand a chance, InuYasha-sama. He's only human like I am. And Shippo-chan is much too inexperienced with Sesshomaru-sama to even have a chance. And Koyasha isn't on best of terms with him either..."

"And _I'm_ on good terms with him?! That's news to me!" InuYasha protested.

"Please, InuYasha-sama," Rin pleaded, "You must try! Sesshomaru-sama is your brother! And please, if you work with him, we have a much better chance of finding our daughter sooner."

"Wait..." InuYasha said, trying to piece together what the young girl just said, "This Sayuri kid is _yours_ and _Sesshomaru's_?"

"Yes, InuYasha-sama. We desperately want her returned to us!"

"THAT HYPOCRITICAL BASTARD!!" InuYasha had steam flowing out of his ears by this point, "He gave me all that shit for being a 'filthy, disgraceful hanyo' and then he goes and has a hanyo kid! I'm going to _kill _him!"

"You have no right to insult my family, half-breed. It was your own blood who dared to kidnap my daughter." Sesshomaru said with a deadly cold tone as he appeared at his mate's side, perfect golden eyes glaring down at InuYasha.

"Don't even start with me!" InuYasha began, stopping when his daughter's hand held onto his arm.

"Daddy, please. Don't fight with Oji-san. We just need to find Sayuri and Rikuse." Koyasha said, ignoring the cold glare she recieved because of her lack of respect when she reffered to her uncle.

"Keh. Whatever. I just want to find Rikuse."

"Your son, as I said years ago, no longer resides under your care," Sesshomaru stated, a cold anger obvious in his tone, "When you find him he is under my instruction. I will kill him for daring to kidnap my daughter."

"There's no fucking way you'll do anything to him!"

"Daddy! Stop!" Koyasha pleaded once more, a sad realization in her eyes, "Oji-san is right. We can't do anything for Rikuse now! All we can do is find Sayuri and bring Rikuse to Oji-san. I don't want him to die either, Daddy. He's my brother. But we can't change the fact that he's made himself a criminal," she looked down, a new sadness in her eyes, "...Mom would say the same thing as I am if she were here."

InuYasha closed his eyes, his ears flattening against his head as his jaw clenched together, unable to say anything.

"Listen to your daughter, InuYasha." Sesshomaru commanded coldly, "Be happy that at least one of your children didn't turn out to be a criminal."

In silence the taiyokai turned around, making his way back to the caste with a cold grace.

"He seemed like the same bastard he's always been," InuYasha muttered angrily, "Nothing has changed."

Rin sighed sadly, taking InuYasha's hand into her own.

"In the end everything will turn out alright, InuYasha-sama. It always does."

"Yeah Daddy," Koyasha agreed, leaning up against him with a small smile, "Oba-san is right. We'll get Sayuri back and find Rikuse. Everything will be ok."

InuYasha just sighed, taking his hand out of Rin's and walking away from Koyasha, following his brother's path towards the castle with a solemn silence.

"You must remember, girls," Miroku said quietly as InuYasha walked away, coming to stand between both girls, his arms draping over their shoulders, "In the end, he's always ended up losing someone. First it was his mother, then it was Kikyo, and then it was your mother, Koyasha. And now he might end up losing his only son at the end of this journey."

Koyasha looked down at the ground as she slid out of Miroku's hold, bringing her eyes up to look at the figure of her father.

"It's not like I want to lose Rikuse. I just..." she paused, turning back towards the others as she tried to find her words, "We can't do anything now..." her gaze dropped to the ground with her realization, sorrow sweeping over her, "I feel useless knowing I can't save him."

Rin's hand came to rest on her neice's shoulder, the young woman comforting the part demon the only way she could.

"Koyasha, I can try to talk to him. I don't want to see Rikuse die either. You see, I was the one who had responsibility over him when Sesshomaru-sama allowed him to be in our group. He's like my son. But for now, let's just go inside and figure out where we can search for Sayuri, and then we'll move on from there."

Koyasha raised her head, forcing a smile for her aunt, "Alright, Oba-san."

* * *

They had all entered the castle after that little talk, arriving just in time to stop a quickly rising argument between the brothers. Usually, they would have just let it run it's course, but with Sesshomaru in the state he was in the taiyokai wouldn't have held restraint against his brother, meaning an inevitable death for the hanyo. So, when everyone was calmed, Rin gathered them all in a room where they all sat around a small table, InuYasha and Sesshomaru seated opposite of eachother at each end. Rin took her seat at Sesshomaru's right as everyone sat, silence settling over them.

"So what do you want me to do, Sesshomaru?" InuYasha demanded after a moment, breaking the silence, "Go out and look for my son just so you can kill him?"

"Cease your stupid questions, hanyo. It was not I who thought you should search for my child, it was your insufferable daughter."

"Don't insult my kid!"

"This Sesshomaru can insult anyone who is deserving."

"What the hell was that?!"

"Daddy, please!" Koyasha interuppted, glaring at her father, "We don't need to argue."

"He insulted you!"

"I don't care!" she retaliated, "He can call me whatever he wants. You just need to stop being so sensitive. Right now all that matters is finding Sayuri and Rikuse!"

"Koyasha is right," Miroku added, following to turn his attention to Sesshomaru, "Now, Sesshomaru-sama, are you aware of any areas that Rikuse may be residing in?"

"Until his actions I had assumed the child had died out on his own long ago. And for him to be evading any detection, he may be impossible to find."

"Well, why don't we just go out and look for them then?" InuYasha asked, leaning on the table, "We'll find them eventually. And it's better than sitting around here."

Rin visibly twitched as Sesshomaru's eyes took an angry glint.

"I will not settle for finding my daughter _'eventually,'_ you imbicile!" Sesshomaru hissed with a cold anger, "Unlike you, I wish to find her _alive_!"

"Why the hell wouldn't we find her alive!? It's not like Rikuse is going to kill her or anything!"

"Your son is a criminal, InuYasha! He has no reason to hold a grudge against this family, and no reason to kidnap my daughter for a ransom of some sort! The only reason he would do what he has done is to kill her!"

"There's no way in hell he would do something like that! He has no reason to!"

"Daddy, Sayuri was having dreams where Rikuse killed her," Koyasha explained.

"She doesn't even know who Rikuse is! How could she know it was him that was 'killing' her?"

"When Koyasha spoke to her of Rikuse, she said she didn't want to talk about him because she saw him enough in his dreams." Rin added, carefully choosing her words, "And we've never even spoke of Rikuse in front of her before that."

"It was just a dream."

"But it can mean something," Miroku commented.

"Well..." Shippo began, turning all eyes towards him, "There was a rumor circulating around us kitsunes when I was out training about some type of phrophecy."

"And what does that have to do with this, Shippo?" Rin asked curiously.

"Most of us thought it was about your kid."

Sesshomaru was quick to react, "What was it!?"

_"_A Lord's young daughter wails in the night, unaware of the misfortune she brings, before she even has the will to fight, for our twilight prince, it is a song of death she now sings." Shippo recited, "Or something close to that."

"That would mean..." Rin began.

"Sayuri would be destined to kill Rikuse." Miroku completed.

"Wait a sec," InuYasha began, slightly annoyed, "Since when has my son been called 'the twilight prince'?"

"He looks like Sesshomaru in his demon form, and his eyes are a brighter gold than any of ours. And he transforms at twilight, Daddy." Koyasha explained.

"And technicallity," Rin said, "You're the prince of the West because of your Father, InuYasha. So it makes sense why they would call your son a prince."

"Well who made this prediction?" InuYasha demanded, eyes directed at Shippo.

"I think it was some demon oracle named Madoka."

"He is a real oracle," Sesshomaru filled in, "I've seen him before. He and my Mother used to make exchanges when I was young."

"So now we know why he kidnapped Sayuri," Miroku said, "But we need to find out how we can get her before he kills her."

"He won't kill her when he's in normal form," Koyasha said, "I just can't see him doing that unless he was a demon."

"I'd believe that," Rin agreed, "He was never a very violent child unless he was in demon form. The only time he ever harmed anyone was when he was a demon."

"That would mean she is already dead," Sesshomaru hissed.

"There is a chance she isn't dead yet." Miroku said, "Sango once told me you have a demon slaying village not to far from this location."

"That is true," Sesshomaru said, annoyed, "But what does it have to do with anything?"

"If they caught word of him they would have gone after them."

"He could have fought them on his own if they did go after him."

"Not with a frightened, screaming child in one hand." Koyasha pointed out.

"The slayers would have killed her as well."

"No they wouldn't have," InuYasha countered, "When I was young I ran into a slaying clan. They wouldn't kill me because I had human blood and I was a child. But they wouldn't bring me in either."

"Despite that, what if they didn't catch a word of him? That means my daughter is dead!"

"We can't just assume she's dead Oji-san," Koyasha said, "We still have to search for her."

"She's right, Sesshomaru-sama." Rin assured.

"But that leads us back to the same issue," Miroku pointed out, "How do we find them?"

"Search." InuYasha replied.

"Sounds like the only option we have," Shippo commented, "Unless there is some type of seer like Madoka we can make tell us where they're at or something."

"There are no such people," Sesshomaru said, annoyed, "Otherwise this Sesshomaru would have already consulted them."

"Wait!" Koyasha said, making all eyes turn to her, "When Misako kindapped Rikuse, she didn't even come near us. If she would have, Daddy would have woken up! She had to use something to call Rikuse to her!"

Sesshomaru's eyes light up with a realization, "There is a flute that can call demons of high power to the user. The lower demons that call children to them use a similar technique."

"Well, where is this flute?!" InuYasha demanded, an excited glint coming to his eyes.

"The witch has it."

That glint in InuYasha's eyes dissapeared automatically, the hanyo dropping his head on the table with an audible groan.

* * *

"Get the fuck out of my head!" Misako's scream was audible as she rammed herself into the walls of her castle, her pale hands twisted in her hair.

_It's useless. You brought this misery on yourself when you accepted my proposal._

She screamed out at the voice in her head, sliding onto the ground, "Get out! Just get out!"

_That is not possible._

"You made me leave them!"

_I did nothing to make you leave your family. You were the one that turned your back and walked away as your little girl screamed and cried for you to stay._

"I abandoned her!" it was more of a bitter fact than an accusation.

_  
Don't worry about the past. You won't be able to reach your goal if you grieve over a child who probably doesn't even remember you._

"Shut up," she pleaded as tears streamed down her face, her brown eyes opening, "Just shut up."

She could see him in front of her, nearly completely transparent as he sat on the opposite side of the room, his red eyes watching her writhe in tears and pain.

"Why do I have to see you?" she chocked out, her hands dropping from where the had grasped at her head, "Isn't your invasion of my mind enough?"

_"The form you see is a creation of your mind. It is of your own choice that I am sitting in front of you."_

"Why are you here?" she asked as she tried to straighten herself up, her breakdown behind her, "Why won't you just be quiet in my mind?"

_"Because you accepted my proposal on the terms that I would not lend you my powers for free."_

"What do you want, then?!" she demanded, "Are you going to take over my body until I'm not here anymore."

_"No. All you have to do is follow my orders and submit to my demands."_

"So you'll take away my freedom?"

_"Over time."_

"Bastard."

_"I've been called worse."_

"Whatever," she spat out, "But you get no control until I reach my goal!"

_"Your goal? Your lust to become what you saw your little hostage was? You're no better than that hanyo, wishing to be something stronger while casting everyone else aside."_

She got herself to her feet, brushing down her kimono and glaring down at the transpartent man only she could see, the image of the large white dog coming across her mind's eye.

"He has nothing to do with it!" she screamed, "That little transforming, god forsaken son of Inu-Yasha has nothing to do with this!"

_"Then why do you want the powers of a demon, Misako?" he asked, standing as well, "So you may be on equal terms with the man you claim to love so much? So you can be the same as the hanyo who despises your very existence?"_

"Shut up!" she demanded, "Stay out of my head."

_"I live inside you, dear. Your thoughts are mine as well."_

She glared at him, turning her back on him as her long black hair whipped around her, "I curse the day I ever accepted your proposal, Naraku."

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**A/N: As you all know per chapter one and the authors note that was here before, Maistwin got out of her cage again, and I apologize for any mental scarring she caused you. But, anyways, yes. CHAPTER 1 EXISTS!! OMG, it's a miracle. For people who caught this story after we posted that chapter, all I'm going to say is that it didn't exist for a long time because we lost the original file and were to lazy to rewrite it. But now it's here. Rejoyce. And, btw, we didn't get any fan art. Oh well. Maybe we'll try again later. So, review on this chapter because you love us (and review on chapter one)!**

**Enjoy!!**


	20. The Necklace

_**A/N: Sorry guys, Rikana so dutifully updated the wrong story. XD Here's the real chapter, before a brief break. Have fun!**_

_**

* * *

**"Don't waste your time on me you're already  
The voice inside my head (I miss you, miss you)  
I miss you (miss you, miss you)  
I miss you (miss you, miss you)"_

-Blink 182; "I miss you"

* * *

Koyasha, over the years, had lost most of the memories of her mother. Things had faded away as new memories had filled her brain, once clear images of her childhood becoming more blurry and fogged over. And for a long time she hadn't noticed it, she hadn't tried to hold onto the images of her mother. They had just slipped away like water through her fingers, the memories not all that important to her child mind. She loved her mother and it wasn't like she had taken the woman for granted, but when her memories were gone she couldn't retrieve them. When she had gotten old enough to understand things like this she had regretted not trying to hold onto her memories, but she learned to deal with her mistakes. There were pictures of her mother back at Grandma's house, and there were stories she could sometimes pry out of her father. But... it made her sad sometimes. Growing up without her mother took a toll, and even though she loved her father, she some times wished she could have her mother instead of him for a day. To get to know her, to talk with her, to laugh with her... she'd be truly happy if she could do that. Yes, at one time, she had done that. She just couldn't remember now. Knowing that kind of hurt, in a way, causing her heart to clench much to tightly when she thought of what she couldn't remember.

_"You know, baby, I'm always here." _

Koyasha's eyes opened to the sound of the voice she could barely recognize, cool air blowing over her face. She sat beside a body of water that flowed silently, a beautiful bridge slightly visible down the way, patches of flowers and bright green grass covering over the bank. She could tell that this wasn't a place of her own world, but the fact didn't scare her. The usually sharp vision she possessed was limited to a few feet in front of her, the heavy mist and fog making the land on the other side of the water out of her reach. But, despite her confusion and slight sorrow, she felt at peace. So, with a sigh, she slowly rest herself down on her back, the grasses and flowers hugging around her form.

"Mommy..." she was whispering her thoughts aloud as she closed her eyes, "I just wish I could talk to you again..."

_"You can, Koyasha."_

Her eyes snapped open as she sprang to a sitting position, her muscles tense. Gold was met with brown then, a small smile on the woman's face.

Koyasha was in awe. Pictures of her mother were one thing, but to actually be there with her was really the only way you could appreciate her beauty. She was an angel in every sense now, her eyes and face soft and loving, the deep chocolate brown bringing back memories Koyasha hadn't been able to recall in years. There was a type of beauty that she had never really appreciated before, a beauty that only someone who had never really felt true hate towards anyone could possibly possess. The light radiated off her face, making every detail soft and pleasant, and she moved with a grace that even Sesshomaru couldn't obtain. But, even though she was really there, kneeling down in front of her, Kagome seemed a bit... _transparent_, in a way. Like she was just a reflection and the true person was somewhere else. But it didn't matter to Koyasha. Her mother was there, and that was all she cared about.

"Mommy...?" her mouth barely moved as she spoke with a tone of surprise, her lips and mouth suddenly going dry.

_"It's been a long time, Koyasha." _her mother kneeled down in front of her, pushing the young girl's jaw up to a closed position with a small smile, _"I've missed you."_

"Are you real?" She didn't care that she was ruining whatever mood had been set with her bland comment. It was just a question she had to ask.

Kagome just smiled a bit sadly again, moving herself into a more comfortable position, _"Kind of, dear."_

"What do you mean...?"

_"You're dreaming, honey. But I'm really here, just not on Earth. And right now, I can't just leave you with only your father's... 'guidance.'" _she laughed a bit sadly, brushing her raven black hair out of her eyes, _"I know you don't want anything to happen to Rikuse."_

"Is he really going to die?" she felt like she was a child again, scared of the world around her, "I mean... Would Oji-san really kill him?"

_"Sesshomaru... Well, I don't know, honey. I would like to say he wouldn't."_

"I can't do anything, can I?"

Kagome took on a sad expression that made Koyasha's heart ache, _"...No."_

"...Well, Daddy... Daddy is doing better!"

Kagome's smile brightened then, her eyes filled with a bright light, _"I'm glad he is!"_

"But Oji-san had to tell me how babies were made..."

The ex-miko laughed, the sound melodic to the part demon's ears, _"I'm not surprised, dear. InuYasha was never one to talk about things like that."_

Koyasha couldn't find the words to say next. She was never one for small talk. She didn't chat, really, she just said what had to be said. And right now she didn't have anything to say, anything she had to tell her mother. She was just there, in a rare silence, staring at the woman that gave birth to her so long ago.

"_You'll wake up soon, dear." _Kagome sounded sad, _"Ask me whatever you wish with the time we have left together."_

"...What am I supposed to do, Mommy?" A sudden wave of pain crashed over her, her eye watering, "I don't know... what to do..."

"_You live on, dear."_

"But how do I do that Mommy?" tears she hadn't expected were streaming down her face, "What do I do when my brother has been sentenced to death and my entire family is going insane?"

Kagome smiled sadly, gathering her daughter up in her arms.

"_You stay strong. You smile through the hard times, you grin and bear through the worst things. You keep everyone around you smiling, you do what you can for the people you love. That's what I did. When Rikuse was entranced, I didn't blame him. I just loved him like I always had, I kept smiling as he cried. I held you in my arms and I told you I loved you, I assured you that even without me you could keep on going."_ She sighed softly, a small sad smile still painted on her face, _"All you can do is be strong, Koyasha. Be strong for you father. For Sayuri. And most of all, for Rikuse."_

Koyasha nodded into her mother's chest, trying to lose herself in the warmth she remembered her mother giving her. But this time is just felt as if something feather light was embracing her, as if she were covered in the lightest silk. There wasn't any warmth in the form of this ghost, but the love was there. And when she found it she let it flow into her, warming her heart as her skin stayed cold.

"Mommy, will you ever be coming back?" It was a question only a child would ask, Koyasha having been reduced to such a state in the presence of her long dead Mother.

"_...No."_ Her mother seemed as if she hadn't wanted to say that, as if it hurt her more than death to see her daughter's face fall.

"_Baby," _She began again, _"You should ask your father about the necklace."_

Koyasha began to form more words on her still dry lips in question, but she blinked and her mother was gone. The world around her was gone and she was staring up into someone else's eyes, strong hands grasping her shoulders.

"Koyasha...?!" her father's whispered words came with a slight shake, causing the young woman to pull away and sit up.

It really had all been a dream. A pleasant dream woven with the sadness of her still prominent grief, with the presence of her mother and the few memories she held.

"Koyasha, what's wrong?"

The young girl was confused at her father's words, but she was soon very aware of the helplessly twisted blankets around her and the thin layer of cold sweat covering her body, her pink hair in a disarray around her.

A question passed through her lips before she could stop it, "What was Mom like?"

Her father's worried eyes were suddenly infiltrated by a golden sadness, his gaze turning away from hers for the slightest second.

"Daddy, please," she felt like she was pleading, but this was something much more sincere than that, "I just want to know. I want to know if it was really her I saw in my dream... I want to make sure."

His gaze turned back up to her, "That's what you were dreaming of... Your mother was the cause of your nightmare?"

"No, Daddy," she chocked on her words, unsure of how to explain that her dream had been much more real than anything she'd ever felt, "She was there talking to me. Telling me what to do... Telling me it was ok..." she dropped her head slightly, trying to find the right words, "And it was just... so... so real. I don't think it was a dream, maybe it was something more. Much more. But I just can't–"

She felt a sudden weight added to her bed, her father taking a seat beside her, his back to her as he interrupted, "She was beautiful... And she loved everyone she met. She was more forgiving that anyone should be. She turned every sad look brighter, she managed to make the dreariest days worth something. Every person we ever ran across, whether they be demon, mortal, or anything in between, was given some form of trust by her. To be evil you had to prove it before she would believe it, but to be good in her eyes was the easiest thing. And even when I was stupid and decided to betray her she always forgave me... I never deserved someone like her, but somehow I ended up with her."

"What do you mean, you didn't deserve her?" Koyasha had never heard her father speak with such sincerity or feeling, and it put her in a state of confused awe.

"When she freed me from my seal, I made a serious attempt on her life. I didn't succeed and we began to travel together. And then I went off to another woman, always coming back thinking I had done nothing wrong. I neglected her even though I protected her, I ignored her feelings even though she accepted mine. She was too good for me... but yet she loved me. She even gave herself up to me when I wasn't really myself. And then she had you and your brother."

"And she never stopped loving you."

"...I don't know why she didn't just throw me away like she should have."

"Daddy," Koyasha crawled out of her twisted covers with some difficulty, kneeling on the bed beside her father, "Why do you think like that?"

"Think like what?" he looked up at her with his brown eyes.

"...Oh," it threw her off to see a human face, "I didn't know you were human tonight."

"New Moon." Two simple words that tossed her father's life upside down.

"But, anyways. Daddy, Mom loved you. And you aren't just some trash to be thrown out. You're a good person too."

"Maybe you made me like that, Koyasha," his voice was unusually quiet, "But before... I was a selfish, heartless bastard. Your Mother should have just left me stuck to that tree."

"Don't say that, Daddy," a small smile graced Koyasha's face, "Because if she would have done that you never would have had me, your little angel!"

He laughed a bit, dull white teeth barely visible in the night, "Yeah. My little angel from hell."

She pushed his shoulder slightly, smiling. But then, she remembered.

"Daddy?"

"What do you want now?"

But instead of asking a question she simply moved so she was sitting at his side, her hand going into the folds of his shirt. He jumped at the contact, but she just smiled, surprised when her hand hit cold metal. Grasping at it, she watched her father's expression change back as she pulled it out into the open, her golden eyes able to see nearly every detail in the night. Such a simple trinket lay at the end of the silver chain, obviously from the time of her mother, and she tilted her head as she studied it. It was a heart locket, embedded with blue diamonds, its usual beauty obviously diluted without the sun to make it shine.

"Daddy, what's this?"

With a small, sad smile, he answered quietly, "Your mother gave it to me, before you were born. It was when she left. She said her father gave it to her before he died."

"Ojii-san?" she muttered curiously, rolling the trinket over in her fingers, "Daddy, you do know that this is a locket, right?"

"A locket?" the word felt foreign on his tongue, but he knew he had heard it before.

"Yeah..." Carefully, she put her nail on the ridge where the two folds met, popping it open and opening it's long hidden secrets, "...It's a necklace that holds pictures."

He must have heard her breath catch in her throat, "What's in it?"

"A picture of mom..." she knew he couldn't see in the dark, like she could, as she studied the pictures that obviously had been taken when her parents hadn't been paying attention, "...And you."

"Me?"

"Obaa-chan must've taken it when you weren't paying attention..." she wanted to run her finger over the picture of her parents, resting side by side, smiles on their faces, "...When you can see, tomorrow morning, I'll show you how to open it."

With a small click, she closed the locket, letting it fall back to rest on her father's chest. For a moment, they both shared a sad and peaceful silence, but nothing could last forever.

"Get back to bed." He told her after a moment, standing up, "It's late."

"Look who's talking." Koyasha countered as she slid back under her covers, "You're still up."

"I'm still up so I don't accidentally get discovered by a certain brother of mine."

"He didn't kill me when I was human. And plus, even if he didn't know about the whole, hanyo-turns-human thing before, he knows now. He's kind of got a hanyo kid."

"Keh. Whatever."

She smiled slightly, watching her father take a seat beside the bed with a yawn, "Night, Daddy."

"Shut up and sleep." She didn't miss it when her father grasped at the locket on his neck.

And with the smallest smile Koyasha once again slipped back into her darkness, not to be visited again by her mother for that night.

* * *

**PLEASE READ! VERY IMPORTANT!!**

**A/N: I know this chapter might seem a little out of place - it was originally meant to be the chapter AFTER the other one that isn't posted yet. I would edit it, but I don't have the time since I'm leaving for the weekend. **

**I come as a barer of bad news, though.**

**Unknown Life is officially going on haitus.**

**Why? Because the next chapter is written by Maistwin. What does that have to do with anything? Well, she takes an online pre-calculus class, and it takes up most of her time. I'll explain her schedule for you...**

**Monday-Friday: A LOT OF WORK  
Saturday: Left-over work  
Sunday: Church, rest, head start on work**

**Her worksheets usually fluctuate from 20-40 questions, each requiring long amounts of time to finish. Her daily dose of just math homework is 5-8 hours. Quiz/Test days take even longer. And, on top of all of this, she's writing her own novel on the side. So... yeah. Forgive us. **

**We will be back in December, when her class ends. Around Christmas, probably. We'll bring you a nice 2-3 chapter update to make it up to you. smiles**

**I hope you all understand! Be good until then!!**


	21. Guilt

**_A/N: Ha ha! I am back! Back from the dead! And so is this story! Yaaaaay!_**

**_So yup. Maistwin is here to annoy all of you again. But hey, at least I'm giving you a chapter, right? RIIIIIGHT?! Thought so. Enjoy!_**

**_

* * *

_**

"_Dead as dead can be," my doctor tells me_

_But I just can__'__t believe him, ever the optimistic one_

_I__'__m sure of your ability to become my perfect enemy_

_Wake up and face me, _

_Don__'__t play dead cause maybe_

_Someday I will walk away and say, _

"_You disappoint me,__"_

_Maybe you__'__re better off this way_

_~A Perfect Circle; "Passive"_

_

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_**Chapter 20**

Something was different about the clan that day. Kiryuu Aida already knew that his best friend had led the slayers to a demon's hideout, only the night before. What he couldn't understand was why she had yet to return, and what exactly that had to do with the meeting called by their leader. Everyone was looking at him. Even as they waited for their leader's first words, they continued to look at him, whispering his name.

_Where's Yuuki?_

The boy slayer, Sasuke, pushed by him in that moment, proving himself to be one of the few people to take absolutely no interest Kiryuu. But this time, he wouldn't have it. He grasped the boy's shoulder, cringing when his action received a sharp glare. "What do you want, pony-tail?" the boy snapped, wrenching his shoulder from him without missing a moment.

His words nagged him, but only for a moment. Kiryuu soon regained his composition, despite the unwanted attention around him. "You went with Yuuki last night…" He cringed, narrowing his eyes. "What happened? Why isn't she here-"

Their leader, Kaori-sama, chose then to speak.

"Thank you for gathering here."

Everyone fell into silence. As if rehearsed, all fell to their knees and bowed to their clan leader, only sitting up when Kaori gave them the gesture. Kiryuu sat there eagerly, doing the best he could to decipher the stillness around him. However, it was for not; the man's expression was near unreadable in the early morning.

"I'm afraid…a rising slayer has betrayed us."

The solemnity of his words had already begun to summon the boy's dread, and the scattered glances of the clansmen could only worsen it. He could see how Kaori look at him, even now.

He didn't like it.

"Yuuki Narita has willingly given herself to a demon. She has allowed it to drink her very blood."

Gasps rose from the crowd. In less than a moment, everyone had forgotten about him entirely. The area was silent.

Kiryuu couldn't believe a word that had been said. The beautiful girl, the one who had called him friend, couldn't have betrayed him like that. And yet, the whispers had already started around him, collecting, growing louder even as he ignored them.

"_I knew that girl was up to no good."_

"_I knew it the moment I saw her."_

"_She had a witch for a mother. I suppose it was only a matter of time…"_

"_That's what she gets for making friends with Kohaku-san's ghost…"_

He couldn't take it. Words continued to drone from their leader's mouth, but he had long since stopped hearing it. By now, even his breathing was hard, and his fists had clamped shut atop his knees. Suddenly, he shot up and stood, for all of them to see.

"It's a lie!" he shouted.

All eyes fell on him, in that instant. Yet it did not affect the harshness of his breath. "Yuuki-san would never do something like that! She hated demons! You know that!"

Slowly, his clan leader raised his eyes to look at him. In regular circumstances, Kiryuu would have righted himself, and apologized for his disrespect—but he couldn't now. He met the man's eyes with a wary challenge.

"The monk Rikuse confirmed it," Kaori said. "Though you did not see it, that man performed enough miracles to prove his own purity. His word is all the proof we require."

"I don't care what some monk says!" he shouted, whipping his arm in front of him in his fervor. "Yuuki-san would never do that!"

The whispers around him had become a ruckus of suspicion. Not even he could believe the disrespect he had displayed, but he couldn't help it now. But even so, the man's cruel stare caused him to draw back even further. "I understand your pain, Kohaku-san. However, your conduct has no place in this clan. Restrain yourself."

It wasn't the reprimand that caused the slow, painful boiling of his blood. It was that name. Only a glance at his fellow clansmen showed that they, too, recognized the mistake, but would not call it. Because of this, Kiryuu could not sit. His shaking hand clenched at his side, and his eyes drifted towards the ground as he tried to monitor his own rage. "I…am not…Kohaku…" he whispered. Before there was any chance for a response, he looked up and met Kaori's cruel gaze. "Just because some damn boy slayer showed you guys up a million years ago, doesn't mean he's come back to haunt you! Dammit, I am not that boy! I don't care how much I look like him, talk like him, or smell like him, I am not that god damn Kohaku!"

The silence that followed was as suffocating as their gossip. Despite this, Kiryuu continued to shake with rage. Hatred filled him—but for who or what, he did not know. He just wanted them to shut up. All of them.

At first, he didn't even realize he had begun speaking again.

"I'm going to look for her," he said. "And I'm not coming back without her."

With the gasps, there were chuckles. There were smirks on their faces. Now, he saw this with more clarity than he ever did. Kiryuu looked towards Kaori for some kind of support, or even a faint remnant of the kindness he had once shown towards him.

Nothing.

Kaori's face was like stone. Though his pale hands remained relaxed over his thighs, his black eyes were hardened to a glistening onyx. When his thin lips parted, his words were brief.

"Then don't return."

The young slayer had never felt loss like this. Only a passing glance over the gathered crowd confirmed his leader's brutality was not opposed. A second was unnecessary. Before he realized it, Kiryuu had left that gathering—perhaps even run from it. He meant to put as much distance between him and that place as he possibly could.

He made only one stop, before he had forsaken his village. When he reached his own hut, it already had the smell of a forgotten place. The door made a lonely creak as he pushed it aside. Still, he knew he would only need a short time here. He saw his objective the moment he stepped onto the grayed mat. There, on his short table, was his only weapon: a kusarigama.

Even in his rushed state, he had to take a moment to admire it. The kusarigama was as sharp as the day it was given to him, the scythe's curved blade gleaming in the mid-day light. In it, he could see the reflection of his dark brown eyes from under black-cropped bangs. They were different than that morning. They were had darkened. As he fastened the weapon to his clothing, he pushed that fact out of mind.

"Fine," he whispered, his hand sweeping over the now-empty table. "She won't care that I've changed."

He wouldn't come back without Yuuki.

********

It had been hours since Yuuki had seen daylight. It felt like days since she had felt it. The paper-thin walls of her new prison somehow absorbed even the slightest remnant of moonlight, the echoing silence forcing her to remember her isolation. Raw skin on her wrists still throbbed from the remnants of the monk's ropes—she was certain that its threads still dug into her skin, even now. Though she was used to pain, it had never been so severe. She was certain now that the false monk had planned for this. Hours had passed since he had left her, but the echo of his words still haunted that room.

_"Next time, don't involve yourself in things you don't understand."_

With a resounding cry, she slammed her head against the hardened ground, at last letting tears of defeat leak from her eyes. The cloth binds that had replaced her ropes dug tighter because of it, forcing a second, louder cry from her throat.

It was hopeless.

No one here would believe her story; the monk was too thorough. His lies were too effortless. They fell from his lips like sweet flowers.

_"This girl has committed a great sin,"_ he had said. _"She must have time to be cleansed. If you give us lodging, you may be rid of her soon enough. I can protect you from her, in the meantime."_

His smile would haunt her memories. Ever present, ever sweet, it accompanied each and every one of his lies. And they believed it.

She screamed again, this one borne of frustration. The tears had begun to flow faster, spotting the ground with a soft patter. "You won't get away with this!" she screamed. "You can't keep me quiet forever! You can't keep me here!"

Her cries were met only with silence. Soon, Yuuki rolled onto her side, left to pant in darkness. Solitude stilled her.

Then, he came.

The door slid open with a loud groan, flooding her vision with moonlight. Yuuki raised her bound wrists quickly to block it, but found it no use. As her reddened eyes began to adjust, she see the glint of his raven locks, and the golden shine of his staff. But before their eyes could meet, he slammed the door behind him, shutting the light out once more.

"No one can hear you, Yuuki," he said. "Nor does anyone care. You're no one here."

Rage took her before anything else. She tried feverishly to stand, jerking her bound legs beneath her if only to launch herself at him. However, this was for naught. Yuuki hit the ground with a sudden shout, reduced only to staring where she could make out his shadow.

"My people will save me," she growled. "They'll come for you, demon!"

Clearly, this held no terror for him. The next sound from him was laughter—soft, bitter laughter.

"No, they won't."

Yuuki had reached the brink of madness. Again she flung herself towards him, shrieking as she did so, but the only thing she felt was the impact of solid wood. She could feel something seeping into her binds, following an intense stinging sensation. Her wounds had reopened.

Before she could do anything further, she felt the man kneel beside her. As his fingers brushed her neck, the resulting shudder nearly choked her. Something wet streaked from the wound he had gifted her, causing another sting to tighten her throat.

"We have something in common," he said, his calm tone reddening her already bloodshot eyes. "Both of us will do whatever we can to survive. Even if that means becoming feral."

Her breathing was as rough as it was audible, intensified by her wrath. She wanted to see him, if only to know that her raging was beginning to cut through that cool exterior. But everything was darkness to her. Helpless, she went limp against the wooden planks, staring into the abyss with a gaze even darker.

"We have nothing in common," she snarled.

Suddenly, the far window creaked open, once more blinding her with light. There, on the windowsill, was the small demon she had glimpsed with him when she was first taken. The kitsune, whom he had called Kazu.

The creature seemed startled at the sight before him, though he soon dismissed his surprise with a shake of his blonde hair.

"I have Sayuri," he rushed. "She's asleep, and there's no one around. Do you want me to bring her in?"

Apparently, Rikuse had already forgotten her presence. A black sleeve brushed over her as he stood, swiftly turning from the kitsune as he approached the doorway. The action itself prevented her from ever glimpsing his expression.

"Bring her in, Kazu. I didn't plan to stay here long."

Kazu moved without a second thought, leaving the frame with only a brief nod. However, he took the moonlight with him. The window swung shut.

She could hear the monk shifting about in the silence, no doubt searching for the door's notch. Even so, she couldn't bring herself to believe that he was as blind as she. Yuuki held her breath, forced to wait for something, anything, to happen.

The door slid open. Though Rikuse shuddered for only a moment in the light, Yuuki was again forced to close her eyes.

"You can't escape," he said. "Don't try."

When she opened her eyes, there was only darkness. She was left to her pain, alone.

********

The moonlight was of no comfort to Rikuse. Neither was the calm that had begun to settle around the small town. The power surge brought by the half-moon left him wavering for days after, its aftertaste left sour in his mouth. He couldn't think straight. Even his calm façade, usually flawless, was affected by a lingering, indescribable rage.

He knew he shouldn't have been attempting this, especially now. But he had made a promise to the man who had allowed them shelter, one he couldn't break. In each town, he had to prove his own 'purity,' to ensure his place among the people. This time, it appeared that he could be of some assistance to a young samurai.

_"His name is Hitoka," _the man had said._ "His daughter has been possessed by a spirit demon."_

The task would be simple. Somehow, his mother's genes had been as strong in him as his father's. This wouldn't be his first exorcism, and he knew it wouldn't be his last. That didn't change the fact he couldn't stand them. To watch a poor victim writhe, screaming, clawing, as he tried to draw a creature out of them, was something he would never be able to stand. Tonight was the only night he would look forward to a task; it would push thoughts of Yuuki and Sayuri from his mind. He would go through with the exorcism.

_Ironic. A demon exorcising a demon._

The home he came to was small, perhaps large enough for three or four rooms. There was nothing special about it. Yet, he couldn't help but notice a long patch on the pale screen, stretching from the door's apex to the wooden porch. Part of it still hung loose, fluttering in the wind. Something had torn it.

A scream bellowed from the room, almost causing him to drop his staff.

"**GET OUT!**" it roared.

Now, began his task. Rikuse took a moment to regain his posture, tightening his rope, brushing fingers through his hair. The rings of his staff jingled in new protest, but he would not listen. He had nothing to fear. Taking a deep breath, he placed his fingers against the door, and swiftly slid it open.

Everything had been destroyed. Doors and tapestries were strewn about, clawed to ribbons by what could only have been a wild animal. Immediately, he was hit by the smell wretched to his senses. Something impure. The man was forced to cover his mouth, just to avoid it.

_Keep going._

He ventured deeper into the house, already preparing for the worst. Still, he assumed this girl would be less threatening than other tasks he had had to face. The monk saw nothing yet that would seem otherwise.

Rikuse came to an entrance covered only by a torn curtain, whose flaps fluttered in a chilling, unnatural breeze. He never had to part them. They separated in a sudden gust, accompanied by the inhuman shriek of a feral girl.

"**OUT! OUT!" **

Before he realized it, only his staff separated him from this girl, this creature, that clawed feverishly at his neck and face. Her features were a blur of brutality—stringy locks swung this way and that as she snarled, an action that revealed yellowed, bloody teeth. Even with his experience, his reflects were slowed by surprise.

_I have to stay calm._

He focused all his energy in forcing her down. With great force, he shoved his staff against the girl's chest, clenching his teeth as he tried to keep her restrained. And yet, she continued to claw, screaming and yowling like an untamed beast. Rikuse had to fight to keep her down.

"What force could compel you like this?!" he exclaimed.

Then, as suddenly as she had sprung, the attack just ceased. The girl relapsed against the ground, chest rising and falling with rapid breath. She didn't seem peaceful. Quite the contrary. Though the air fell still around them, Rikuse could feel the uneasiness that came with an approaching storm. The sensation was suffocating. He kept his staff pressed tightly against her, unwilling to take another chance.

However, the calm gave Rikuse a chance to gather his thoughts. When he next spoke to the incensed demon, his thoughts were ordered, and his voice calm.

"What brings you to this girl, demon?"

He didn't relieve the slightest pressure on his staff, still afraid for the impending attack. An answer was not something he expected. Rikuse was well prepared to finish the job in a moments notice, but some inner curiosity always drove him to ask such questions.

Silence. The monk braced himself for another attack; he could already feel the calming energy running through his form.

The girl beneath him shifted, just moments before he could act. Hair fell away from her eyes, revealing the dark, mocking gaze concealed beneath. She was smiling.

"What gives you the authority to say that, demon?" she asked.

Her words struck his core. He stopped, eyes wide, and unable to move any further.

"What…did you say?"

"You heard me." A cruel laugh shook her form, forcing her head back as she gave tribute to her deep amusement. "I've never seen such a thing! A demon, parading about as a monk!"

His stupor proved to her advantage, clearly. She sat up despite the staff, looking deep into his eyes, judging him without qualm. Then, she smirked.

"At least I don't hide my nature."

There was no physical attack she was capable of that could have struck him so deeply. But the unseen wound gave way to something else. The monk could feel rage begin to rush through him, usually unknown to him in his human form. A red haze slowly clouded his gaze, bathing the girl in a vision of the blood he now craved.

"You're not welcome here," he said, eyes narrowing to thin slits.

The woman could only laugh.

"Neither are you."

He knew he wasn't supposed to kill this girl. She wasn't the problem, it was the demon possessing her. Yet, now, he wanted nothing more than to see her burn. Unable to stop himself, he shoved her back down with his staff with enough force to break her.

"Leave this place!" he shouted.

She didn't seem to respond, for a moment. The girl continued to watch him, waiting for something. Her lips twitched into a smirk. She attacked.

The moment she launched herself at him, he was ready. Through his rage, he could feel the pure energy pounding in his veins, and he forced it upon her with the thrust of his hand. The moment it met her chest, she released her power in a piercing shriek. Her host fell back onto the ground, limp, and motionless.

It was over. Yet, he could feel no satisfaction. Rikuse continued to stare down at the girl, rage eating away at him until he felt he could no longer take it. The demon's words would haunt him, perhaps for days. The job had been no harder than any previous. So how was it that his dread, his anger, could now be so strong?

He couldn't stand it. The job was done. The monk drew himself to his feet with a light jingling of his staff, stopping only a moment to look back at the girl who had been manipulated. He tried, desperately, to bury the hatred that he felt. But it couldn't be done. When he left that place, it had worsened enough to sicken him.

_She saw…what I was._

If a lowly, bodiless demon had somehow managed that, it meant that his condition was no longer as subtle as he had once thought. It wouldn't be long before everyone could see it. People would start to turn him away again, and people would whisper about the creature that prowled in their midst. A monster. A freak.

Even when the house lay far behind him, Rikuse lacked the ability to think. His mind continued to go over the incident, again and again. He tried not to think of himself as he was—a two-faced being, both pure and impure, that could bring only death. He tried to think of himself as a wanderer, without identity. But that was a lie. He would always have his identity. After all, his very name had been given to him by the woman he so recently betrayed.

The trees taunted him as he walked the forsaken path, shaking as they exchanged their whispers. _It's Rikuse_, they seemed to say, _The treacherous beast who walks with such pride._

He couldn't stand it. The young man hurried his pace, hoping to return to his rented shelter without incident. Still, he stopped the moment he came upon the place. The small house cast strange shadows in the darkness, reminding him of his first anxiety. Rikuse had left that place before Sayuri could be brought there. To return there now would mean facing the girl he had almost killed just days before.

_What have I done to Lord Sesshoumaru?_

Sayuri had been wrenched from her home without warning, without being able to say goodbye to her family. He couldn't bear to imagine what Rin and Sesshoumaru were thinking now, as they no doubt knew who took her. Rikuse had betrayed them in the worst possible way. If he finished what he had set out to do, they would never see their child again.

_I'll…just have to face it. There's no turning back now._

It took great courage for him to open the door. The youth could only hope that his comrades would already be asleep. He held his breath as he observed the room, praying that there would be no motion from any of them.

For once, he proved right. Yuuki had passed out in the middle of the floor, cheeks still stained with tears. Across from her lay Kazu, curled up with Sayuri's rope still held tightly in his hands. And the demon child, beautiful, silver locks spread about her, lay sleeping on the wooden floor.

Rikuse felt relief. He closed the door behind him, though he left a slight crack open to allow for moonlight. However, relieved as he was, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret at the sight before him. Yuuki, especially, didn't deserve this. Her only sin was misfortune. Despite the tight binds about her wrists, he could still see the streaks of blood that had escaped the reddened flesh beneath. They would have to be changed.

Though he was a coarse demon, Rikuse was gentle by nature. It didn't take a second thought before he knelt before her, already untying the cloth he had used to fasten her wrists. His staff was forgotten before the doorway. Beneath the ties, he could feel where her skin had been rubbed raw. Some cuts were so deep they continued to bleed. Her pain was unimaginable. When he saw this, Rikuse felt guilt knot his stomach.

_I'm sorry._

Energy began to flow through him once more, allowing his muscles to calm with its warmth. Brushing his fingertips over her wounds, he could feel the skin beginning to heal, little by little. Before long, no fresh blood soiled his fingers. His guilt was eased, but only slightly. Rebinding her wrists only reminded him of his own sin. The slayer should not be captive at all.

"Why do you do this?"

The small voice that called to him alerted his dwindling reflects, forcing him to turn around with a sudden jerk. When he met Sayuri's sapphire eyes, his guilt revived with the force to choke him.

"You're not evil." The young girl sat up with regal leisure, never allowing her gaze to leave his. Even in the dim moonlight, her features shone with unnatural beauty. Tilting her head, she continued in a softer voice, "I don't believe you want to do any of this."

To gaze at her brought him great pain. Her eyes glowed with Rin's beauty, while each measured word she spoke echoed Sesshoumaru's deliberate nature. He couldn't stand it. Rikuse stared into a dark corner as far from her as possible, but found himself entirely unable to wipe the image of her from his mind.

"Don't ask questions," he said. "It will only make your death more painful."

"But you don't really want to kill me," she insisted.

He closed his eyes tightly, forced to clench his teeth to stifle his own emotion. When he parted them, the words he spoke were as firm as he could make them.

"I'm not who you think I am."

Perhaps she would have said something, had Yuuki's groan been softer. Rikuse shot up, moving as swiftly as he could back towards the open door. He refused to sleep in the same room as his prisoners, especially if they were awake. This was for practical reasons, of course—it would be difficult to sleep in a room with someone screaming at you. However, the man had just retrieved his staff when Sayuri spoke up once again.

"She's been awake the whole time."

Rikuse froze, fingers already around the door's notch when he heard this. He looked back at the demon, eyes narrowed in disdain, though his true emotions were a mess of anxiety. Yuuki couldn't think he was weak.

Left without choice, he left the room, and clasped the door shut behind him.


End file.
